Hurricane Erin weakened to a Category 3 hurricane on Sunday, its outer bands lashing the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, as forecasters warned the storm was rapidly growing.

Erin is the first hurricane to develop over the Atlantic this year, and meteorologists are closely tracking its path and forecast.

Hurricane Erin weakened to a Category 3 hurricane on Sunday, its outer bands lashing the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, as forecasters warned

Hurricane Erin weakened to a Category 3 hurricane on Sunday as its outer bands continued to reach the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.

Hurricane Erin could be near the southeast portion of Florida by Monday, Aug. 18 at 8 p.m. ET. This forecast track shows the most likely path of the center of the storm. It does not illustrate the full width of the storm or its impacts, and the center of the storm is likely to travel outside the cone up to 33% of the time.

Hurricane Erin weakened to a Category 3 hurricane on Sunday, its outer bands lashing the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, as forecasters warned the storm

Tropical Storm Erin -- which is forecast to strengthen into the first hurricane of the Atlantic season by Saturday morning -- won't have a direct impact on the U.S., but it will bring dangerous rip currents to the East Coast.