Ernesto regained hurricane status in the Atlantic Ocean, with maximum sustained winds reaching 75 mph. The storm was located south of Halifax, Canada, moving quickly north-northeast. While Ernesto was expected to intensify before weakening back to a tropical storm, it posed a threat to the East Coast with life-threatening surf and rip currents.
New York City closed beaches in Brooklyn and Queens, while New Jersey officials warned beachgoers about rip currents and potential coastal flooding. In South Carolina, two men drowned in rip currents related incidents off Hilton Head. Additionally, a home collapsed in Rodanthe, North Carolina, due to high waves from Ernesto.
National Weather Service advisories warned of life-threatening rip currents from Newport, North Carolina, to beyond Wilmington, North Carolina. NOAA buoys measured wave heights ranging from 5 to 6 feet along the coast from North Carolina to Rhode Island. Coastal flood advisories were issued for 10 million people along the East Coast, as the storm continued to pose a risk from Bermuda to Canada.
Overall, Ernesto’s impact was felt along much of the East Coast, with officials urging caution and warning of dangerous conditions in the water and potential coastal flooding.
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