(Reuters) - Maria, presently a Category 1 hurricane, could lose strength and weaken to a tropical storm within the next day or so, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said in its latest advisory on Tuesday.

Hurricane Maria is about 175 miles (285 km) southeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (120 km/h), the NHC said.

The center of Maria will pass east of the coast of North Carolina during the next couple of days, the Miami-based weather forecaster said, adding tropical storm force winds are nearing the North Carolina outer banks.