Hurricane Ernesto weakens but remains dangerous near Bermuda

Hurricane Ernesto was weakening as it closed in on Bermuda early on Saturday, downgraded to a Category 1 storm but still threatening the British island territory with powerful winds, a dangerous storm surge and potentially deadly flooding.

The storm was slowly making its way toward the Atlantic archipelago, its center due to pass near or over Bermuda on Saturday morning, with the worst of the storm surge and flash flood potential expected later in the day, the US National Hurricane Center said.

As of 11 p.m. Atlantic Standard Time on Friday (0300 GMT on Saturday), the eye of the storm was 65 miles (105 km) south-southwest of Bermuda, according to the US National Hurricane Center.

Rainbands from the storm began dousing the island territory on Friday afternoon. Its slow speed - moving north-northeast at 13 mph (20 kph) - and large size means Bermuda could experience a lengthy pummeling on Saturday night, the hurricane center said.

It produced maximum sustained winds of up to 90 mph (150 kph), putting it at the high end of Category 1 on the Saffir-Simpson, hurricane scale - still packing very dangerous winds that will produce some damage, the hurricane center said.

On Friday it had been classified as a Category 2 storm, with extremely dangerous winds capable of extensive damage. While it may continue to weaken for the next day or so, it is forecast to strengthen again over the Gulf Stream, the hurricane center said.

Rainfall on Bermuda was forecast at up to 9 inches (225 mm), the hurricane center said.

"Folks, be under no illusion. This storm is the real deal," said Michael Weeks, Bermuda's national security minister, at a press conference on Friday.

Weeks said emergency responders would be posted at strategic areas in Bermuda, a collection of 181 small islands clustered more than 600 miles (970 km) off the South Carolina coast.

By Friday afternoon, Ernesto's winds had knocked out power for 5,400 of Bermuda's 36,000 customers, the power utility BELCO said. The company said it had called its repair crews back from the field because it was too dangerous to work.

Swells generated by Ernesto were already affecting parts of Bermuda, the Bahamas, and the east coast of the United States, the hurricane center said.

In New York, the city parks and the National Park Service announced that all beaches in the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens would be closed to swimmers on Saturday and Sunday with the National Weather Service predicting dangerous rip currents and swells of up to 6 feet (2 meters), the mayor's office said.