Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) on Tuesday declared a state of emergency in anticipation of Hurricane Florence.

The trajectory of the storm is not yet certain, but experts are saying there's a chance that D.C. may experience flooding and high winds.

The mayor also recommended measures to take to be prepared for the storm.

ADVERTISEMENT

“I encourage all District residents and visitors to take this storm seriously and stay up to date on the latest emergency information, including signing up for our AlertDC messaging service,” Bowser said in a statement.

Her decision to implement emergency measures comes after South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster (R) ordered all residents along the coastline to evacuate, and North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper (D) and Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (D) ordered evacuations for residents in low-lying coastal areas. That makes for more than 1.5 million people under evacuation notices.

The storm is expected to make landfall in the Carolinas about 2 a.m. Friday, according to the National Weather Service.