Hurricane Erin weakened to a Category 3 storm with maximum sustained winds of 125 mph while its outer bands pounded the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico with gusty winds and heavy rains early Sunday.

The outer bands of powerful Hurricane Erin lashed Puerto Rico, and the storm is approaching the Bahamas next. What can the mainland U.S. expect?

The first hurricane of 2025 in the Atlantic continued to track north of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands on Sunday morning, hitting those islands with heavy rain and gusty winds. Erin is expected to move away from the islands later today and begin to curve more to the north.

Hurricane Erin weakened to a Category 3 hurricane Sunday as its outer bands continued to lash the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico with heavy rains and tropical-storm force winds.

As of 11 AM AST Sunday, the National Hurricane Center reported that Erin’s center was located about 200 miles northwest of San Juan, Puerto Rico, and 240 miles east of Grand Turk Island. The hurricane is packing maximum sustained winds of 125 mph, making it a Category 3 storm. Its minimum central pressure is estimated at 946 millibars.

While a Gulf disturbance that moved into Texas on Friday seems to have run its course, Hurricane Erin in the western Atlantic intensifies.

Mighty Hurricane Erin will cruise waters just east of the United States this week. Even if the center of the hurricane remains offshore, far-reaching and dangerous impacts will be felt at the beaches.

Tropical Storm Erin is likely to become the first hurricane of the 2025 season by late Thursday or early Friday.