Forecasters said Erin should begin to slowly weaken as it increased wind shear. However, it's predicted to remain a major hurricane until late next week.

Life-threatening surf and rip currents are likely across the East Coast of the United States this week, as Hurricane Erin continues to grow.

After briefly weakening, Hurricane Erin has re-intensified into a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 130 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Powerful Hurricane Erin has undergone a period of astonishingly rapid intensification — a phenomenon that has become far more common in recent years as the planet warms. It was a rare Category 5 for a time Saturday before becoming a Category 4, churning through the Atlantic Ocean north of the Caribbean.

Storms that ramp up so quickly complicate forecasting and make it harder for government agencies to plan for emergencies. Hurricane Erick, a Pacific storm that made landfall June 19 in Oaxaca, Mexico, also strengthened rapidly, doubling in intensity in less than a day.

Charley roared ashore near Cayo Costa, Florida, or west of Fort Myers, packing maximum sustained winds of 150 mph on the afternoon of Aug. 13, 2004. The intensification of Charley prior to landfall was a worst-case scenario since nearly eight hours earlier over the eastern Gulf, it was a Category 2 with 110 mph winds.