WILMINGTON, N.C. (1010 WINS/AP) — A mass exodus is underway in the Carolinas and Virginia Wednesday as Hurricane Florence took a direct aim at the area.
Florence, which may have strengthened to near Category 5 strength, is expected to make a direct hit in the northernmost part of South Carolina or North Carolina by late Thursday or early Friday. The storm will then slow down and wring itself out for days, unloading 1 to 2½ feet of rain that could cause flooding well inland and wreak environmental havoc by washing over industrial waste sites and hog farms.
Forecasters and politicians pleaded with the public to take the warnings seriously and minced no words in describing the threat.
"This storm is a monster. It's big and it's vicious. It is an extremely, dangerous, life-threatening, historic hurricane," North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said.
More than 5.4 million people live in areas under hurricane warnings or watches on the U.S. East Coast, according to the National Weather Service, and another 4 million people were under a tropical storm watch.
