Hurricane Erin has weakened to a Category 1 storm after lashing North Carolina's Outer Banks with rough waves and coastal flooding, and bringing a threat of dangerous waves and potentially deadly rip currents to the East Coast.

Hurricane Erin was the fifth named storm of the season. As of Thursday afternoon, the storm is still a Category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained wind speeds of 100 mph. Its path is taking it away from the U.S., after, for the past few days, the storm has skirted the East Coast and caused dangerous waves and life-threatening rip currents.