This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Tropical storm Florence is becoming a “better organized” weather system that will likely strengthen into a hurricane late on Saturday, weather forecasters said.

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) said the storm was expected to become a “major hurricane” by Tuesday as it passes between Bermuda and the Bahamas. The storm is expected to approach the south-east US coast on Thursday.

Officials in North Carolina are already bracing for impact. South Carolina governor Henry McMaster declared a state of emergency on Saturday, in order to give his state time to prepare for the possible arrival of a hurricane.

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McMaster emphasized that there is no way to know yet when and where the storm will hit land, or when evacuations might be called.

On Friday, North Carolina governor Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency and urged residents to use the weekend to prepare for the possibility of a natural disaster.

“We are entering the peak of hurricane season and we know well the unpredictability and power of these storms,” Cooper said.

Swells generated by Florence could cause dangerous rip currents and coastal flooding on Saturday in areas including coastal Delaware and New Jersey, the National Weather Service said.

At 11am ET, the Miami-based NHC said Florence’s maximum sustained winds were estimated to be 65mph. The storm was centered about 835 miles south-east of Bermuda and moving west at 7mph.