Outer Banks, Hurricane Erin and North Carolina
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The already sprawling storm will grow larger as it hurls the ocean toward the East Coast and Bermuda, and it could have company this week.
Two more tropical systems trail Hurricane Erin, which is following a projected course that brushes past the East Coast without making landfall.
By Tuesday morning, Erin had lost some strength from previous days and dropped to a Category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 110 mph (175 kph), the National Hurricane Center in Miami said.
Hurricane Erin weakened to a Category 3 storm with maximum sustained winds of 125 mph as its outer bands pounded the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico with gusty winds and heavy rains early Sunday.