[ad_1]
More than one million people face mandatory evacuation orders in the coastal areas of North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.
One year after the great storms that ravaged the Gulf Coast and Puerto Rico, the authorities warned those on the way to Florence not to underestimate the threat posed by the storm.
Residents rushed to their homes, formed long queues at gas stations and emptied shelves of hardware stores and supermarkets on Monday.
"A boost is expected in the next 36 hours, and Florence is expected to be a hugely dangerous major hurricane until Thursday," NHC said.
The storm is expected to strengthen near category 5 and "there remains a strong confidence that Florence will be an important and extremely dangerous hurricane, regardless of its exact intensity," said the National Hurricane Center. A Category 5 storm sustained winds of 157 mph or more.
More counties placed under mandatory evacuation
National Guard soldiers are mobilized in the affected states. President Donald Trump has declared an emergency in North Carolina, allowing him to access federal funds.
Six more counties in North Carolina were placed under mandatory evacuation on Monday night, hours after the first order at Hatteras Island. Some areas of Brunswick, Currituck, Dare, Hyde, New Hanover and Onslow counties are affected and more orders are expected on Tuesday.
In South Carolina, mandatory evacuation orders come into effect Tuesday at noon in eight counties located along the 187-mile coastline of the state. From that point on, all roads on I-26 and 501 will be headed away from the coast, said South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster.
"This is a hurricane," McMaster said Monday. "We do not want to risk a life in South Carolina."
Government offices, including schools and medical facilities, will be closed in 26 counties, McMaster said. He estimated that about 1 million people would be affected by the order, including residents and visitors.
In Virginia, mandatory evacuations begin Tuesday at 8 am for about 245,000 residents in part of Hampton Roads and the Eastern Shore area, Governor Ralph Northam said Monday. "Everyone in Virginia needs to prepare," he said. "This is a serious storm that will affect the entire state of Virginia."
Residents prepare to flee and calm down
Residents of coastal areas boarded homes and packed their bags while waiting for Florence to arrive. Lines were formed at the service stations as people listened to the refueling warnings in case they were ordered to leave.
Crystal Kirwan did not think he had much choice because his family was ready to leave their home on Monday. She and her husband will make the four-and-a-half-hour trip with their children to Dover, Delaware, as soon as he is cleared of his military service. "Probably not much better, but probably safer than here," she said.
Grocery stores started selling water, milk and bread, and the grocery stores struggled to store the batteries, plywood and generators on Sunday.
In a Home Depot in Wilmington, North Carolina, Billy Nivens told CNN they were running out of water, plywood, generators, flashlights, propane, batteries and five gallon cans .
Ryan Fonville visited three hardware stores in Wilmington on Monday and found that they ran out of supplies.
"I've collected my supplies this weekend to share with local community groups so people do not waste gas, gas pumps also run out," Fonville told CNN.
Since Sunday noon, a Lowe's in Lumberton, North Carolina, has been sold to generators, said store manager Mackie Singletary.
According to the CNN-affiliated WCIV, the Coburg Dairy Cow landmark was removed on Monday from Charleston, South Carolina.
Storm growing rapidly
Florence became a Sunday hurricane with sustained winds of at least 74 mph. On Monday morning, the hurricane center ranked Florence in the category of "major" Category 3 hurricanes, with sustained winds of at least 111 mph. It was gaining speed over the warm waters of the Atlantic, raising concerns about the landing and flooding due to the heavy rains that followed, perhaps late Thursday or Friday.
Approximately one hour after the Category 3 upgrade, the storm has been reclassified back to Category 4, which means sustained winds of at least 130 km / h and catastrophic damage predictions, says the center. hurricanes.
Emergency conditions have been reported in the Carolinas, Virginia and Maryland. In Maryland, where some coastal areas are still recovering from the weather, Governor Larry Hogan said the floods could be catastrophic if they hit the state.
"We hope for the best and prepare for the worst," Hogan said.
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper urged residents to prepare for long power outages after the hurricane hit and learn the escape routes they may have to take.
"North Carolina takes hurricane Florence seriously, and you should do it too," Cooper said. "The shares of today can avoid the losses due to Florence."
Two other storms also occur in the Atlantic. Hurricanes Helene and Isaac should not hit the American continent.
Kaylee Hartung reported from Wilmington. Jay Croft and Emanuella Grinberg wrote in Atlanta and Susannah Cullinane wrote in Auckland, New Zealand. Janet DiGiacomo, Amanda Jackson and Hollie Silverman contributed to the report.
[ad_2]Source link
