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WILMINGTON — Hurricane Florence continues its westerly path making its way to the North Carolina coast; where exactly the storm will make landfall is still unknown, but the National Hurricane Center (NHC) is predicting Florence to be a major hurricane when it does.
The entire State of North Carolina is under a hurricane watch as of Tuesday morning and mandatory and voluntary evacuations have been ordered across the Carolinas.
According to the NHC, “A Hurricane Watch means that hurricane conditions are possible within the watch area. A watch is typically issued 48 hours before the anticipated first occurrence of tropical-storm-force winds, conditions that make outside preparations difficult or dangerous.”
Florence is moving north-northwest at 15-miles-per-hour, an increase in forward speed is expected over the next few days.
“On the forecast track, the center of Florence will move over the southwestern Atlantic Ocean between Bermuda and the Bahamas through Wednesday, and approach the coast of North Carolina or South Carolina on Thursday,” according to the NHC.
Sustained winds are currently around 130-miles-per-hour and Florence remains a category four storm. Florence is expected to re-strengthen over the next 24-hours.
While the point of impact is still unknown, according to the NHC hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 40-miles from the center of the storm, and tropical-storm-force winds can extend up to 150-miles.
Storm surge is predicted for the region from 6 to 12 feet above normal.
“The deepest water will occur along the immediate coast in areas of onshore winds, where the surge will be accompanied by large and destructive waves. Surge-related flooding depends on the relative timing of the surge and the tidal cycle, and can vary greatly over short distances,” according to the NHC.
The NHC will continue to monitor the storm and provide updates throughout the day and Port City Daily will also bring continuous updates as they are received.
