Hurricane Erin is expected to reach its peak on Thursday, and its powerful winds will bring a rare gift to experienced Florida surfers while creating a 'very deadly' risk for other beachgoers

Hurricane Erin is moving east of the U.S. coast and will bring strong waves and rip currents to Florida's east coast – and it comes as the National Hurricane Center is eyeing two more tropical waves in the Atlantic.

The massive hurricane was picking up speed, traveling north at 14 mph, and its center was located about 295 miles south-southeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. A tropical storm warning is in effect for parts of North Carolina and Virginia as the impacts from Erin spread northward.

Hurricane Erin continues to churn in the Atlantic waters hundreds of miles off the U.S., prompting officials to close beaches along the East Coast from the mid-Atlantic to the Northeast.

Erin will become a vigorous post-tropical cyclone in the North Atlantic over the weekend, but its effects will linger, including on two tropical disturbances tagged by the NHC as code orange (40-60% chance) candidates for development over the next 7 days.

Hurricane Erin is a sprawling Category 4 storm churning in the Atlantic Monday after exploding in strength at a historic rate this weekend. The storm’s enormous footprint is becoming the biggest concern as it brings heavy rain and gusty winds to islands far from its center and threatens to drive life-threatening rip currents and towering waves toward the eastern US coastline and Bermuda,

Here's a quick, easy-to-read look on the latest about Hurricane Erin, including what Florida residents should know.

Hurricane Erin is forecast to remain well offshore but still bring hazardous currents and possible erosion like previous offshore hurricanes before it.