Hurricane Erin is forcing evacuations on North Carolina’s Outer Banks as it churns in the Atlantic where high winds and heavy rain are pelting the Turks and Caicos Islands and parts of the Bahamas.

Mandatory evacuations are underway for parts of the Outer Banks, including Dare and Hyde counties and various islands, as Hurricane Erin draws closer.

Several days of heavy surf and high winds and waves could wash out parts of NC 12, which connects the popular vacation spot to the mainland, the National Weather Service said.

Hurricane Erin is forcing evacuations on North Carolina’s Outer Banks as it threatens to whip up wild waves and tropical force winds.

NCDOT officials said "given the winds, wave heights and storm surge forecast, it likely won't be enough" to keep NC 12 from flooding at the Outer Banks.

Emergency management officials on Sunday declared a state of emergency and ordered the evacuation of Hatteras Island on North Carolina's Outer Banks beginning Monday due to threats from Hurricane Erin.

Hurricane Erin has prompted mandatory evacuations in the Outer Banks. Avon, Kill Devil Hills, Hatteras Island, Ocracoke Island and Rodanthe are under mandatory evacuations along with Dare and Hyde counties.

In anticipation of the impacts of Hurricane Erin to be felt all along the East Coast, but particularly the Outer Banks and even some parts of Hampton Roads, evacuation orders have been issued for Hatteras and Ocracoke Islands in Dare County.

See the historic Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, the tallest lighthouse in the U.S. Plan your visit for the fall, when the temperatures are still mild and the summer tourists have left. “There are things we just don't have here,