A new system has emerged in the eastern tropical Atlantic, heading westward toward the Leeward Islands as Hurricane Erin continues to spin.

Erin is the first hurricane to develop over the Atlantic this year, and meteorologists are closely tracking its path and forecast.

The Atlantic basin includes the northern Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea and Gulf of America, as the Gulf of Mexico is now known in the U.S. per an order from President Trump. NOAA and the National Hurricane Center are now using Gulf of America on its maps and in its advisories.

Hurricane Erin continues to churn in the Atlantic Ocean as a powerful Category 4 hurricane, the NHC said, noting that it is expected to get faster and stronger. FOX 35 meteorologist Brooks Garner had the latest update on Hurricane Erin's path,

Island communities off the coast of North Carolina are bracing for flooding ahead of Hurricane Erin, the year's first Atlantic hurricane.

Hurricane Erin has reintensified into a Category 4 storm on Aug. 18, according to the National Hurricane Center. See where Erin is headed.

Erin is not forecast to hit the U.S. directly, but coastal areas along the Eastern Seaboard will feel its effects with dangerous high waves and rip currents over the next several days. "These rough ocean conditions will likely cause life-threatening surf and rip currents," the National Hurricane Center warned.

Hurricane Erin dazzled forecasters over the weekend, putting on a spectacular show of strength rarely observed, becoming only the 43rd Atlantic-basin Category 5 hurricane on record and tying Camille in 1969 for the 4th earliest-forming Category 5 ever recorded.