Ernesto Regains Hurricane Strength, Sends Powerful Swells, Dangerous Rip Currents to US East Coast

Ernesto Regains Hurricane Strength, Sends Powerful Swells, Dangerous Rip Currents to US East Coast
Debris from an unoccupied beach house that collapsed into the Atlantic Ocean from winds and waves caused by Hurricane Ernesto, in Rodanthe, N.C., on Aug. 16, 2024. Cape Hatteras National Seashore via AP
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Tropical Storm Ernesto became a hurricane again Sunday as it churned away from Bermuda and headed further out in the northeastern Atlantic, sending powerful swells toward the U.S. East Coast, generating rip currents associated with at least one death and prompting many rescues.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Ernesto’s maximum sustained winds were 75 mph, just barely Category 1 strength.