The latest storm news said that more than 100,000 customers lost power in Puerto Rico as strong storm Erin made landfall in the Caribbean, bringing heavy rain and strong gusts of wind to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
Puerto Rico's private grid operator, Luma Energy, said that by the end of the afternoon of August 17, most customers on the island had electricity.
The majority of customers affected by the power outage from Erin were concentrated in Arecibo, Caguas and San Juan, as rain bands were moving out of Puerto Rico.
The company said the latest storm of the Atlantic hurricane season has caused multiple disruptions across the island.
Meanwhile, according to the US Coast Guard, two divers were swept away by large waves near St. Petersburg. Croix, the Virgin Islands in the US and was rescued by local rescue teams on August 17.
The Hurricane Center has warned residents and visitors in Outer Banks, North Carolina, to monitor the path of Hurricane Erin, with the storm likely affecting weather through midweek. Officials in coastal areas of dare County have declared a state of emergency effective from the evening of August 17 and ordered the evacuation of Hatteras Island starting from the morning of August 18.
On Sint Maarten, due to the impact of Typhoon Erin since August 16, the nationwide debris was recorded on August 17 and the Sargassum seaweed washed ashore.
According to the National Ocean Services Agency, the large amount of seaweed washed ashore is known as the " Sargassum seaweed flooding event", which can cause harmful toxins affecting humans and marine life.
The intensity of Erin has fluctuated over the past few days, with the time of strengthening into a super typhoon. Hurricane Erin is currently a Category 3 hurricane and is expected to strengthen again.
The bands outside Erin continue to sweep through Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, causing heavy rain and strong gusts of wind. Total rainfall from 51-102mm, up to 152mm, can be recorded in many places, leading to flash floods and landslides.
Hurricane Erin is 443 km north-northwest of San Juan, Puerto Rico, with maximum sustained winds of 201 km/h. The storm is moving west-northwest at a speed of about 21 km/h.
Hurricane Erin is expected to strengthen over the next two days before turning north on August 18 and 19. According to the US National Hurricane Center, the center of Hurricane Erin is expected to pass east of Turks & Caicos and southeast of the Bahamas on the night of August 17 and the morning of August 18. The storm is then forecast to gradually weaken in the middle and the end of the week as it moves between the US and Bermuda.
These are the latest fluctuations in an already unstable storm. Storm Erin rapidly strengthened from a Category 2 storm on the night of August 15 to a super typhoon of level 5 at the night of August 16 before gradually weakening to a Category 3 storm on the morning of August 17.
"Some fluctuations in intensity are possible in the next few days, but Erin is expected to remain a dangerous major storm through the middle of this week," the center said in its latest hurricane forecast update.
On August 17, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) measured wave heights in the area 335 nautical miles east of the Bahamas' San Salvador island, with a measured wave height of 6.1 meters.
