State of emergency declared in Florida for storm Dorian
Florida residents were bracing for a hurricane that was threatening to smack into the centre of the state over the Labor Day weekend.
President Donald Trump said it appeared the storm's winds would be "unbelievably high."
Dorian gained power late on Thursday night, jumping from 85 mph (137 kmh) to 105 mph (165 kmh) and with higher wind gusts, making it a Category 2 storm on the 5-step Saffir-Simpson scale for measuring hurricane intensity.
Trump canceled a visit to Poland scheduled for the weekend and Florida's governor expanded a state of emergency to prepare for Hurricane Dorian, which is forecast to make landfall on the Atlantic coast Monday as a dangerous Category 4 storm.
"Now it's looking like it could be an absolute monster," Trump said in a video posted on Twitter, adding that food and water was being shipped to Florida.
"It does seem almost certain that it’s hitting dead center and that’s not good. The winds seem to be building at a tremendous rate. It looks like the winds are going to be unbelievably high.”
Trump said Vice President Mike Pence would make the trip to Poland in his place so that he could remain in the United States to make sure federal resources were properly directed at the arriving storm.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who had already declared a state of emergency for 26 counties on the state's east coast, extended it on Thursday to the whole of Florida.
"Floridians need to take this storm seriously. Hurricane #Dorian is moving slowly & gaining strength," DeSantis wrote on Twitter. "Now is the time to get prepared & have a plan.
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp declared a state of emergency in 12 counties to assist with storm readiness, response and recovery.
Published: by Radio NewsHub