As of Monday afternoon, Hurricane Erin was spinning several hundred miles south and east of Florida and forecasters are expecting the storm to grow bigger.

Flooding, rip current and small craft weather alerts were issued by the NWS for South Jersey as result of Hurricane Erin.

The powerful major hurricane is not forecast to significantly affect New Jersey's weather, but it will kick up some big surf and minor coastal flooding.

Coastal flood and beach erosion are also possible this week as Hurricane Erin passes far off the Jersey Shore.

Rip currents are the third leading cause of deaths from hurricanes, and they can happen on a sunny day hundreds of miles from the storm.

Tragedy strikes the Jersey Shore as two drownings prompt urgent safety warnings from officials. With Hurricane Erin approaching, swimmers are reminded to stay close to lifeguards and heed caution.

“Certainly, Erin is not helping,” said Mike Lee, meteorologist with the National Weather Service Office in Mount Holly. But the surf on Monday primarily was being stirred by strong onshore winds, gusting up to 35 mph, behind a front that came through Sunday night and triggered surprising downpours in parts of the region.

Hurricane Erin has strengthened to a dangerous Category 5 storm, but remains on track to just send dangerous surf and rip currents to the Jersey Shore.