Long Island dodged a bullet from Hurricane Erin as the once-Category 5 storm passed about 350 miles out to sea Friday, sparing the region a direct hit but leaving behind high surf that tore away sand from Fire Island’s beaches and claimed the life of a swimmer.
Erin, the first hurricane of the 2025 Atlantic season, briefly intensified into a powerful Category 5 with winds of 160 mph over the open Atlantic before weakening as it curved northward. By the time it passed offshore of Long Island, the system had dropped to a Category 1 with 90-mph winds and was transitioning into a post-tropical cyclone.
Even at that distance, the storm churned up dangerous seas. Waves topping 15 feet pounded the South Shore, eroding dunes and forcing the closure of some beaches. At Sailors Haven, a man drowned after being pulled under by rip currents, authorities said.
Erin’s sweep up the East Coast caused widespread disruptions. In North Carolina’s Outer Banks, surf washed over roads and carved away protective dunes. The storm surge devastated sea turtle nests, wiping out more than half of those deposited on Topsail Island.
New Jersey and Delaware reported flooding in low-lying areas and dozens of water rescues, while ferry service to Nantucket and Cape Cod was suspended in rough seas. Long Island’s low-lying South Shore communities did not experience the major flooding typically seen from coastal storms and nor’easters.
“The flooding was nothing more than we usually get from a storm,” said Mastic Beach Fire Commissioner Bill Biondi. “The tide came in and went back out; there were no evacuations. The peak was about 10:30 at night and most people were sleeping,” he noted, adding that there were no wash-throughs along the barrier beach or at the site of the new inlet off Bellport, which was opened up by Hurricane Sandy, but had filled back in.
Earlier in its track, Erin brought tragedy to the Cape Verde Islands, where torrential rains from the storm’s precursor system killed at least nine people and displaced more than 1,500. Another fatality was reported in the Dominican Republic due to hazardous surf.
By Saturday, Erin had moved into the North Atlantic, where its remnants were forecast to bring heavy rain and strong winds to Ireland and Portugal.
Forecasters noted that Erin’s path bore an unsettling resemblance to 2012’s Hurricane Sandy, though this time the center stayed safely offshore. “This was a near miss,” one meteorologist said. “A slight shift west and we’d be talking about a very different outcome for Long Island.”
North America remains in the heart of Hurricane Season and residents are advised to monitor storm watches and warnings. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is currently tracking a storm named Fernand deep in the Atlantic, but it is not expected to impact the East Coast.