Arthur was holding steady as a tropical storm , not quite rising to the hurricane moniker Wednesday night . But it is poised to cause some holiday travel havoc . At 11 p.m. Wednesday , its maximum sustained winds were 70 mph , 3 mph shy of the hurricane category , the National Weather Service said . Arthur , the first named storm of the Atlantic tropical cyclone season , is churning up the East Coast and might be at its most dangerous Thursday as it grinds up against the North Carolina coast . So far , that is the only part of the country predicted to be hit with hurricane force winds , but the weather system also is causing problems farther north . Officials said Wednesday afternoon that the annual Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular , normally held on July 4 , will be moved to Thursday because of the potential for bad weather . Arthur is expected to become a Category 1 hurricane off the North Carolina coast on Thursday , and although the eye might not hit land , the storm could create dangerous rip currents that day along the Outer Banks and Pamlico Sound , forecasters said . North Carolina 's governor issued a tropical storm warning for the entire coast and sent this message to those who plan to hit the beaches : Stay out of the ocean . `` I do n't want you to put at risk not only yourself but also people who may try to help you , especially our emergency operation workers , '' said Gov . Pat McCrory . `` Do n't put your stupid hat on , '' McCrory said at the New Hanover County Emergency Operations Center , according to CNN affiliate WWAY . Late Wednesday , a mandatory evacuation order was issued for Hatteras Island and a voluntary evacuation order went out to Ocracoke Island . Some vacationers at Southern Shores , North Carolina , said they were n't too worried . `` We 've been coming down here for 20 years , '' said Jim Stafford of Greenville , Pennsylvania , as he stood in front of the beachfront house where he 's staying . `` We 'll just see what happens . '' When asked whether he was taking any precautions , Stafford said he planned to fill up the gas tank on his car `` just in case . '' Track the storm . Strong winds could push water to the point where the underwater sandbars in front of North Carolina 's beaches break , creating rip currents that would rush swimmers out to sea , CNN meteorologist Chad Myers said . `` There 's no time for you to react . That 's why you ca n't be there at all , '' Myers said , describing a danger area from Wilmington north to Nags Head . `` This is not a landfall-problem hurricane . This is a rip-current-problem hurricane , '' he added . As for Independence Day , the storm could send rain to the Washington area during the day , but forecasters said it should n't spoil most of Friday night 's festivities -- including a colossal fireworks show on Washington 's National Mall -- as it veers away from land . PBS is planning to broadcast the pyrotechnics blossoming over the Reflecting Pool live via 20 cameras . Those wet roads . In Boston , officials said there 's a chance of rain Thursday , so the city 's music-and-fireworks event might not happen that day either , reported CNN affiliate WCVB . The fireworks could be rescheduled but not the concert by the Boston Pops , State Police Col. Timothy Alben said , according to WCVB . `` The rain is a factor for the orchestra , '' event organizer Rich MacDonald told the television station . `` If the rain is coming down hard enough that it is coming down into the Hatch Shell then it affects the instruments and these instruments are valuable and old . '' Arthur could trigger the wrong kinds of bangs and booms on the roads leading up to the Fourth . It is the busiest week of summer travel , according to AAA . Most of those travelers will be going by car right around the time Eastern U.S. roads will get soaked . `` They are potentially staring down the barrel of a loaded gun , '' AAA spokeswoman Yolanda Cade said . Florida fireworks . Still a tropical storm Wednesday afternoon , Arthur was slowly creeping north off Florida 's northern Atlantic coast , dumping rain there , the weather service said . The same Florida coast might be an ideal place to spend July Fourth , as Arthur should be far away from there by Friday and fireworks will burst over the beaches from Key West to Jacksonville . By late Saturday , Arthur will be gone from the U.S. coast , providing mostly pleasant weekend weather from Florida to Maine . What you need to know about Independence Day .
Arthur was not at hurricane strength late Wednesday . Boston Harbor Fireworks Festival will be held Thursday , not July 4 . Arthur will threaten parts of the East Coast but spare most Fourth of July celebrations . Arthur is expected to veer away from land and be gone by Friday .