Hurricane Erin has been downgraded to a Category 3 hurricane. A tropical storm warning is in effect for the Turks and Caicos Islands as winds and heavy rains hit the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.

The first Atlantic hurricane of 2025, Erin reached Category 5 status before weakening somewhat and becoming a Category 4 storm, with maximum sustained winds of 140 mph (220 kph)

Officials in the northern Caribbean are warning of heavy rains and dangerous swells as Tropical Storm Erin approaches the region.

Tropical Storm Erin is on the cusp of strengthening into a hurricane, which it is expected to become later this Friday, as it bears down on the northern Caribbean islands.

According to the NHC’s forecast track, the center of Erin is likely to move near or just north of the northern Leeward Islands over the weekend.

As of Wednesday afternoon, Tropical Storm Erin is churning in the Atlantic Ocean and moving toward the Caribbean, likely to become the season’s first hurricane, a storm with sustained winds above 74 miles per hour.