Much of North Carolina’s Outer Banks region is under a tropical storm watch with Hurricane Erin expected to skirt the area this week, according to the National Hurricane Center. The sprawling Category 4 storm is churning in the Atlantic Monday after exploding in strength at a historic rate this weekend fueling the potential for life-threatening rip currents and towering waves toward the eastern US coastline and Bermuda,

Forecasters say Erin may fluctuate in intensity but is likely to remain a major hurricane through the middle of the week. Residents in the northwestern Bahamas, Bermuda, and along the southeastern U.S. coast are being urged to monitor the storm closely.

Erin strengthened again Monday as it began pelting part of the Caribbean with rain and wind before it’s expected to create dangerous surf and rip currents along the U.S. East Coast this week.

Hurricane Erin was a Category 4 storm again Monday morning and is expected to grow even larger and stronger, Life-threatening surf and rip currents are likely across the Atlantic coast from Florida to Canada.

Erin is the first hurricane to develop over the Atlantic this year, and meteorologists are closely tracking its path and forecast.