BUXTON, N.C. — Hurricane Earl blew toward the Eastern Seaboard today as a major storm with winds of around 145 mph as forecasters tried to pinpoint exactly how close the strongest gales and heaviest surge would get to North Carolina's fragile chain of barrier islands.

Forecasters also were trying to figure out whether the storm would stay offshore as it tracks up the Northeast coast or bring hurricane-force winds to Long Island, the Boston metropolitan area and Cape Cod.

Tourists were largely gone from North Carolina's Outer Banks, but residents who stayed behind said they were prepared to face down the powerful hurricane.

"There is still concern that this track, the core of the storm, could shift a little farther to the west and have a very significant impact on the immediate coastline. Our present track keeps it off shore, but you never know," National Hurricane Center spokesman Dennis Feltgen said.

The center issued a tropical storm warning early today for the coast of Long Island in New York and a hurricane watch was issued for areas of Massachusetts. A hurricane warning was already in effect for the coast of North Carolina.

Earl's first encounter with the U.S. mainland should come around midnight, as the storm is forecast to pass just off Cape Hatteras, bringing wind gusts of up to 100 mph and several feet of storm surge both from the Atlantic and the sounds to the west of the islands.

Gov. Beverly Perdue told reporters at a morning news conference that North Carolina is prepared for Earl. It's now up to coastal citizens to get to a safe place as the storm passes by, she said.

"We're very ready, as ready as anybody can be," Perdue said. "It's a serious storm and we all need to treat it like a serious storm."

Three counties have issued evacuation orders, but Perdue said emergency officials can't make residents leave their homes. She warned emergency crews often can't immediately reach stranded coastal homeowners after a storm.

Evacuations continued early today on the coast, with residents and visitors told to leave a barrier island in Carteret County and another in Dare County where the Wright Brothers National Memorial marks their first successful airplane flights at Kitty Hawk in 1903.

The Outer Banks had only light winds and high clouds early today as the eye of Earl was hundreds of miles south of Cape Hatteras. Those conditions were expected to deteriorate throughout the day, said National Hurricane Center forecaster Todd Kimberline.

While thousands of tourists heeded calls to evacuate Hatteras Island, locals familiar with hurricanes vowed to ride out Earl, preparing to spend days stranded from the mainland. Dare County officials said the daring should be ready to fend for themselves for up to three days.

Many people — boaters, beachgoers and residents alike — were adopting a wait-and-see approach, making simple preparations like stocking up on food or attaching hurricane shutters to their houses. But with the likelihood that the storm's ultimate path will become clear today, officials expect planning to shift into high gear.

"Post-Katrina, people are really sensitive to storm preparedness," said Atlantic Beach, N.C., Mayor Trace Cooper. "You see enough pictures of people waiting on their roofs to be rescued and you decide to take precautions."