A tropical storm warning has been issued for North Carolina as Hurricane Erin churns up the east coast of the U.S. as a Category 2 storm.

Hurricane Erin, churning north in the Atlantic hundreds of miles offshore, is expected to trigger a dangerous storm surge and tropical storm conditions on Wednesday along North Carolina’s Outer Banks and other stretches of the U.

Hurricane Erin is bringing strong waves and life-threatening rip currents to the Atlantic coast, including Florida, leading to warnings in some areas as the storm moves east of the U.S. over the Atlantic.