Hurricane Erin formed as a tropical storm on August 11 and has been churning across the Atlantic for over a week. Now forecast to remain hundreds of miles offshore, the storm is still sending massive 20-foot (six-meter) waves crashing over vulnerable sand dunes along North Carolina's Outer Banks.
Officials say the islands' only highway, N.C. 12, is likely to be torn up and washed out in several spots, potentially isolating villages for days or weeks. Roughly 3,500 year-round residents are accustomed to such isolation, but tens of thousands of vacationers now fleeing the area are not.
Hurricanes are becoming more frequent and intense, a trend that scientists are attributing to the ongoing effects of climate change. For instance, every hurricane in the 2024 Atlantic season was intensified by human-driven climate change, according to a new analysis by the nonprofit climate research group Climate Central.
"Every hurricane in 2024 was stronger than it would have been 100 years ago," said Daniel Gilford, climate scientist at Climate Central and lead author of the report. "Through record-breaking ocean warming, human carbon pollution is worsening hurricane catastrophes in our communities."
What is causing hurricanes to become even more of a threat? Click through now to find out.