Hurricane Earl has strengthened over night to a strong category 4 hurricane. The Storm should begin to lash out at the US East Coast sometime late tonight.

Hurricane Earl continues moving in a NNW direction at approximately 18 miles per hours. It’s winds are now at 145 miles per hour as of the 8 AM National Hurricane Center advisory. The minimal central pressure of the storm is at 932 millibars, and it’s location is 30.1°N 74.8°W. This puts it several hundred miles off the coast of North Florida. The projected path of Hurricane Earl puts it about 50 miles or so from the outer banks of North Carolina early Friday morning. Much of the North Carolina coast will likely face Hurricane force winds, as it is still expected to be a category 4 hurricane by that time. It will than track NNE likely giving Delaware, New Jersey, Long Island and Maryland tropical storm force winds. From there, it will likely be just off the coast of Cape Cod by late Friday night or early Saturday morning, as still a category 2 storm. The entire East Coast from South Carolina to Nova Scotia will feel Earl’s affects later this week.