CNN Report -- Weakening by the hour but still covering a massive area, Hurricane Earl spun off the North Carolina on Thursday night into Friday morning, lashing parts of the Outer Banks with rain and high wind.

People along the East Coast made just-in-case preparations despite the waning power of the storm.

The hurricane has been downgraded to a Category 2 storm, the National Hurricane Center said Thursday night, but warned that "Earl is expected to remain a large and strong hurricane as it passes near the Outer Banks" of North Carolina.

Hurricane warnings and watches stretched from North Carolina to Delaware and into Massachusetts, where a hurricane warning was issued for Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket and the surrounding area.

A hurricane watch was also issued for the coast of Nova Scotia, Canada. Tropical storm watches and warnings were in effect for most other coastal areas between North Carolina and Nova Scotia.