Irene, the first hurricane of the season, weakened a little as it arrived on the coast of the Carolinas on the US East Coast.<br /><br />This is the second hurricane alert people on North Carolina's barrier islands have been through in the past year.<br /><br />Previously, the evacuation was voluntary but this time it has been officially declared to be mandatory.<br /><br />Al Jazeera's Tom Ackerman reports from North Carolina.
