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Hermine’s storm surge threat shifts to New England coast

The weather service said there is still a threat of minor coastal flooding across low-lying areas.

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He adds it will not make landfall.

The storm claimed at least two lives, in Florida and North Carolina, but the widespread power outages and flooding that battered Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas had yet to materialize farther north, where alarming news reports scared many tourists away from the beach on Sunday.

Mercer says the path of the storm is still uncertain, so people should check their weather forecasts in case the intensity changes.

At 11 a.m. EDT (1500 GMT) on Monday, Hermine’s center was about 230 miles (365 km) southeast of the eastern tip of Long Island.

“The main concern today will be high surf and risky rip currents on all ocean exposed beaches as a result of Post-Tropical Storm Hermine, ” forecasters wrote on social media. In general terms that just means a lower-strength event, said Rebecca Gould, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. Winds could also increase this afternoon to 15 to 25 miles per hour with gusts to 35 along the coast.

It’s expected to stall over the water before weakening again.

Beaches across the MA coast and Cape Cod were hammered by the strong winds and heavy rain Monday.

Governors along the Eastern Seaboard announced emergency preparations.

The tropical storm warning for New York City and a voluntary evacuation of Fire Island was lifted on Monday.

Hermine is slowly dying off the East Coast, but the storm continues to cause problems ranging from beach erosion to coastal flooding and rip currents.

The biggest impact of Hermine was the shuttering of public swimming areas on the popular Labor Day weekend.

The waves eroded some of the shore, creating sand dune cliffs where kids climbed. A rougher surf cleared portions of the beachfront.

Mahabub Khan, a cart peddler who works the Jersey Shore, said the crowds were noticeably smaller this year after Hermine warnings reached the hurricane level.

One passenger, New Jersey resident Derek Beidermann, said in a video tweet from his brother-in-law Robert McHugh that beginning early morning Sunday, the ship started “swaying a bit” in the rough weather.

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Hermine hit Florida Friday as a Category I and weakened but could regain hurricane force as it travels up the coast. It swept across the Everglades and struck highly-populated south Florida, causing 5 deaths in the state and an estimated $23 billion in damage, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. And Gould said strong riptide might be the most risky result of Hermine. The other person died when a tree fell on him.

Forecast Track Valid 5am Tuesday