Hurricane Earl pounds N Carolina

KITTY HAWK, North Carolina

Hurricane Earl pounded North Carolina on Friday as it sped up the US East Coast, threatening dangerous waves and riptides across the eastern seaboard.

Coastal residents huddled at home after tens of thousands fled the strongest Atlantic storm of 2010.

It was expected to produce major swells along much of the eastern seaboard during the day, send waters surging up to four feet and dump up to five inches (13 centimeters) of rain.

Weather watchers said Earl was the most powerful hurricane to threaten the US Northeast and New England since 1991, when Hurricane Bob caused deadly damage. (AFP)