Though Hurricane Erin is not forecast to make landfall on the U.S., the storm’s rapid intensification has prompted increased measures in North Carolina.

Hurricane Erin dazzled forecasters over the weekend, putting on a spectacular show of strength rarely observed, becoming only the 43rd Atlantic-basin Category 5 hurricane on record and tying Camille in 1969 for the 4th earliest-forming Category 5 ever recorded.

Anyone who rides out a Cat 5 storm in a high-rise should be prepared for an eyes-wide-open nightmare and an apocalyptic aftermath, one expert warns. The higher up you are, the stronger the winds

Forecasters say Hurricane Erin has exploded into a Category 5 storm in the Atlantic Ocean just north of the Caribbean. The National Hurricane Center says the storm is north of the island of Anguilla with winds of 160 mph.

Forecasters are tracking a new disturbance in the Atlantic Ocean as Hurricane Erin, a Category 5 storm, undergoes an eyewall replacement cycle, according to a Saturday night update from the National Hurricane Center.