OUTER BANKS, N.C., July 4 (UPI) -- After slamming the shoreline, Hurricane Arthur is moving away from the U.S. East Coast Friday morning, leaving thousands without power for the Fourth of July.
Arthur, the first hurricane of the season, hit the North Carolina coast at the Outer Banks Thursday night as a Category 2, but moving quickly at 21-22 mph was back out over the Atlantic Ocean early Friday morning.
Arthur's maximum sustained wind speeds reached 100 mph and caused storm surges up to five feet.
While the forecast calls for a little sunshine in the area as early as Friday afternoon, utilities say more than 22,000 have been left without power for the holiday.
Tropical storm warnings have been issued by the National Hurricane Center for Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Island further north, which could see rainy weather without a direct hit, before Arthur makes weaker landfall Saturday in Nova Scotia.
