Hurricane Erin reaches wind speeds of up to 160mph near Caribbean
Hurricane Erin - the first of the 2025 Atlantic season - raced from maximum sustained winds of 100mph (160kph) to heights of 160mph (255kph), before weakening slightly to 140mph (220kph).
This means it has gone from a Category 5 to a Category 4 storm, which still carries a warning of potential "catastrophic damage", according to the US National Hurricane Centre (NHC).
Erin gained power as it began moving westward past the Leeward Islands - which include Anguilla, Guadaloupe, and the Virgin Islands - on Saturday.
Later in the evening, the centre reported that the storm was "undergoing structural changes" but was still "formidable" as its rain and winds buffeted Puerto Rico.
While the hurricane is not forecast to make landfall, it is expected to "produce life-threatening surf and rip currents" as it turns northward next week.
Beaches in the Bahamas, much of the east coast of the United States and even Atlantic Canada will be affected, the NHC said.
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Protruding US coastal areas - such as Long Island, New York and Cape Cod - face a higher risk of potentially severe tropical storm or hurricane conditions, AccuWeather has said.
The hurricane's impact is already being felt on multiple islands, with tropical storm watches issued for some Caribbean islands, including St Barts and St Maarten.
The NHC has warned heavy rain could cause flash flooding, landslides and mudslides, saying Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands could be affected on Sunday.
The US government deployed more than 200 workers, including employees from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, to Puerto Rico as a precaution when a flood watch for the territory was issued earlier this week.
With hurricane-force winds extending 30 miles from its centre, Erin is considered compact in size. It should begin to slowly weaken on Monday but will remain a major hurricane until late next week, the NHC said.
Storms that ramp up so quickly complicate forecasting and make it harder for government agencies to plan for emergencies.
Scientists have linked the rapid intensification of hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean to climate change, as global warming is causing the atmosphere to hold more water vapour and spiking ocean temperatures.
The warmer waters give hurricanes fuel to strengthen quickly and unleash more rain.
Erin is the fifth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, which began on 1 June and runs until 30 November. It is the first to become a hurricane.
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