John O'Connor , Wayne Parry

With Hurricane Erin still hundreds of miles from New Jersey, its winds and swells were creating life-threatening rip currents and rough surf along the state's beaches Tuesday, and Gov. Phil Murphy urged people to stay out of the water until the storm had passed.

As of mid-afternoon, the Category 2 hurricane was 655 miles south-southeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, with maximum sustained winds of 105 mph.

It is not expected to make a direct hit on the U.S. East Coast, but its high winds were causing dangerous conditions along the entire coast from Florida to Canada.

The National Weather Service issued tropical storm and storm surge warnings for North Carolina's Outer Banks, where evacuations were underway Tuesday.

Erin has become an unusually larg

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