Latest: Florida Gov. Says ‘Evacuate, Evacuate, Evacuate’

Georgia gov. evacuates 500,000 people

Northbound traffic on Interstate 95 flows northbound through Viera, FL., on Oct. 5, 2016.(Craig Bailey/Florida Today via AP)

Motorists look on as Wayne Demps with CWC Transportation, center rear, fills the empty tanks of a Marathon gasoline station, Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2016, in Hollywood, Fla. Hurricane Matthew marched toward Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas and nearly 2 million people along the coast were urged to evacuate their homes Wednesday, a mass exodus ahead of a major storm packing power the U.S. hasn't seen in more than a decade. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

The Georgia coast hasn’t seen a hurricane evacuation since a near-miss with Hurricane Floyd in 1999.

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11 a.m.

Hurricane Matthew has strengthened to a catastrophic Category 4 storm as it barrels toward the heavily populated coast of Florida.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said the storm’s maximum sustained winds had strengthened to 140 mph as of late Thursday morning and were expected to maintain their strength as the storm approaches the Florida coast.

Hurricane conditions were also still affecting the Bahamas. The storm was expected to start affecting Florida by early afternoon Thursday.

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10 a.m.

Gov. Nikki Haley says parts of two counties along South Carolina’s northern coast are being evacuated ahead of Hurricane Matthew.

Haley told reporters Thursday morning evacuation orders go into effect at noon Thursday for parts of Horry and Georgetown counties.

Haley warned anyone in an evacuation zone not to take the orders lightly. She says surge from the storm could be as high as 8 feet and affect not only the coast but also areas farther inland.

Eric Dunn sit on the northern end of Tybee Island's beach watching larger than average waves roll in as a result of approaching Hurricane Matthew, Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2016 in Tybee Island, Ga. (Josh Galemore/Savannah Morning News via AP)

So far, Haley says 175,000 people have evacuated from the coast. On Wednesday, the state reversed the eastbound lanes of Interstate 26 from Charleston to Columbia, allowing more motorists to move inland at once.

Forecasters say they expect Matthew to strengthen to a Category 4 hurricane before making landfall in Florida, turning north and passing just off the South Carolina coast late Friday or early Saturday.

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9:45 a.m.

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory says the latest predictions show that his state will avoid a direct hit fromHurricane Matthew.

But emergency workers are continuing to prepare for high winds, rain and storm surge.

McCrory says North Carolina cities like Jacksonville and Morehead City could still see wind gusts of up to 60 mph beginning Saturday. Widespread power outages are possible. There could be a foot of rain in some areas.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami says the hurricane is strengthening and called it dangerous and life-threatening. About 1.5 million people in Florida have been ordered to evacuate.