Hurricane Erin was a Category 4 storm with 130 mph winds on Monday night as it passed to the east of the Bahamas. The forecast track keeps the center of the storm well away from the U.S. East Coast this week, but tropical storm and storm surge watches have been issued for the North Carolina Outer Banks. National Hurricane Center

Tropical storm conditions and coastal flooding are expected to appear in areas along the Outer Banks starting late Wednesday.

Despite changes in intensity, Erin’s size will drive dangerous surf and massive seas along much of the United States East Coast, as well as Atlantic Canada and Bermuda waters.

Beachfront property owners are bracing for the worst with predictions for a life-threatening storm surge of up to 4 feet and significant coastal erosion, with waves expected to batter beaches for 48 hours or more as the hurricane crawls northward offshore through at least Aug.

Hurricane Erin has battered North Carolina’s Outer Banks with strong winds and waves that flooded part of the main highway and surged under beachfront homes