Notice the historical line that the storm has made a significant turn from heading west to almost directly north

The U.S. Air Force 403rd Wing released footage showing one of its planes entering the eye of Hurricane Erin. By early Tuesday, Erin had lost some strength from previous days and had maximum sustained winds of 115 mph (185 kph),

Erin’s surf and storm surge could cause erosion along sections of the Florida and East Coast and shapes up as potentially worse for North Carolina’s barrier islands, which are under mandatory evacuation orders ahead of the four feet of storm surge and 20-foot offshore waves Erin is expected to bring.

Hurricane Erin underwent rapid intensification to become a Category 5 storm in just hours. It has since weakened to a Category 4 status.

Forecasters are confident that Erin will turn northeast and away from the eastern U.S., but it’s still expected to produce dangerous waves and rip currents and could bring tropical force winds to North Carolina coast, said Dave Roberts of the National Hurricane Center.

Evacuation orders were issued in North Carolina Tuesday as Hurricane Erin continued to swirl upward across the Atlantic Ocean and two disturbances followed behind it.

Forecasts nudge Erin's likely path to the west, increasing the risks at U.S. beaches. Experts say the storm's massive size, rather than windspeed, is what makes it a threat.

Two more tropical systems trail Hurricane Erin, which is following a projected course that brushes past the East Coast without making landfall.