11 September 2018
Hurricane Florence: Warnings of life-threatening surge
By BBC
Hurricane Florence - the most powerful storm to threaten the Carolinas in nearly three decades - is expected to strengthen, say forecasters.
Officials warn there is a chance of "life-threatening inundation from rising water" over the next 48 hours as Florence heads for the US East Coast.
With sustained winds of about 130mph (215km/h), the weather system is currently a category four storm.
It could make landfall on Thursday, near Wilmington, North Carolina.
Virginia, Maryland, Washington DC, and North and South Carolina have all declared states of emergency.
"This storm is a monster," North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper told a news conference on Tuesday. "It's big and it's vicious.
"It is an extremely dangerous, life-threatening, historic hurricane."
Where is Florence now?
Hurricane Florence was still about 845 miles (1,360km) off Cape Fear, in North Carolina, as of 14:00 Atlantic Standard Time (18:00 GMT) on Tuesday, according to the latest National Weather Service (NWS) update.
The update says Florence - which is moving at about 17mph (28kmph) - is expected to "continue a slow strengthening trend for the next day or so".
It could weaken on Thursday, according to current predictions, but officials cautioned Florence will most probably remain "an extremely dangerous major hurricane through landfall".
