Weaker Hurricane Earl heads for New England

Hurricane Earl weakened Friday as it sped north toward New England, lashing coastal communities with heavy winds and rain while disrupting travel on the eve of a three-day weekend.

By Friday afternoon, the eye of the storm was about 290 miles southwest of Nantucket, Mass., and veering to the north-northeast, a course expected to carry it farther out in the Atlantic Ocean. Maximum sustained winds dropped to 80 mph — 6 mph above hurricane force — and further weakening was expected, the National Hurricane Center said.

On its forecast path, the storm was expected to sweep past Cape Cod, Mass., overnight and brush Nova Scotia, Canada, on Saturday.

President Obama declared a state of emergency for Massachusetts to facilitate federal disaster funding if needed.

North Carolina beaches absorbed the brunt of the storm overnight Thursday. Heavy rains flooded roads and strong winds downed trees and power lines, but local officials had no reports of casualties and said property damage appeared to be minor.

Despite losing much of its punch, Earl is still a Category 1 storm, which, according to the hurricane center, packs “very dangerous winds” in which flying and falling debris remains a danger to livestock and people.

Earl had been a much stronger, Category 4 storm earlier in the week, with sustained wind speeds topping 135 mph.

Hurricane warnings remained in effect along the Massachusetts coast from Woods Hole eastward around Cape Cod down to Sagamore Beach, as well as the popular summer vacation island spots of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket.

The weather service predicted a dangerous storm surge would raise water levels as much as 2 to 4 feet above ground level in areas of North Carolina, the lower Chesapeake Bay and Massachusetts.

The surge will be “accompanied by large and destructive waves,” it added.

Some communities that braced for damage were relieved that Earl left them relatively unscathed. One such town was Ocean City, Md., which faces the Atlantic.

“This is the best-case scenario we could face,” said Mayor Rick Meehan. “Once the storm is out of here, it’s going to be a beautiful weekend.”

Many hotels had red neon “vacancy” signs, but Meehan said it did not appear Earl had deterred many travelers from weekend plans. Many shops and restaurants posted joking messages about the storm on signs. “Earl or shine, we’re the place to dine,” boasted a sign in front of Shenanigan’s restaurant.

But Capt. Melbourne “Butch” Arbin, head of the Ocean City Beach Patrol, warned that strong rip currents would continue to churn the sea after Earl has passed.

“For us, tomorrow is going to be the more dangerous day,” Arbin said. “It’s going to look like the perfect day — blue skies, low humidity — but it will still be treacherous.”