Hurricane Florencehas weakened to a Category 2 storm — but the worst is still yet to come.As the storm comes within 235 miles of Wilmington, North Carolina, its winds are down from 140 mph to 110 mph,CNNreported. North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Virginia and Maryland are all at risk of experiencing the storm, which will arrive late Thursday or early Friday.North and South Carolina officials pleaded with more than 1 million residents in the storm’s path to evacuate, according to CNN.Callaghan O’Hare/Bloomberg via Getty Images“The time to prepare is almost over,” North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said on Wednesday, according to theLos Angeles Times. “Disaster is at the doorstep.”“The thing to do is get away from the storm — you gotta get away from what’s coming,” South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster noted, according to the newspaper. “At some point, the rescuers will not be able to rescue you.”Steve Earley/The Virginian-Pilot via APStill, some people are refusing to leave. April Ellis is staying put in Goose Creek, South Carolina, because she and her fiancé will not get paid if they do not return to their jobs after the storm is over, she toldFox News.“Being a family on a budget with a 15-year-old son and two animals, evacuating for a storm, it’s like going on a mini-vacation,” Ellis told Fox News. “It requires money that we just don’t have.”Callaghan O’Hare/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesDavid Goldman/AP/REX/ShutterstockNicklaus Cox, another South Carolina resident, added to Fox News, “Without knowing the extent of damage the hurricane could cause, we couldn’t afford to stay in a hotel for a long period of time should it come to that.”RELATED VIDEO:Bethenny FrankelOn Helping Hurricane Victims One Year After Devastation: ‘It’s Changed My Life’Others want to leave but are having trouble. Mark and Donna Welke — visitors to Charleston, South Carolina, from Illinois — tried to find a car to rent after their flight was cancelled,USA Todayreported.Early on Thursday, PresidentDonald Trumptweeted, “We are completely ready for hurricane Florence, as the storm gets even larger and more powerful. Be careful!”
Hurricane Florencehas weakened to a Category 2 storm — but the worst is still yet to come.
As the storm comes within 235 miles of Wilmington, North Carolina, its winds are down from 140 mph to 110 mph,CNNreported. North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Virginia and Maryland are all at risk of experiencing the storm, which will arrive late Thursday or early Friday.
North and South Carolina officials pleaded with more than 1 million residents in the storm’s path to evacuate, according to CNN.
Callaghan O’Hare/Bloomberg via Getty Images
“The time to prepare is almost over,” North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said on Wednesday, according to theLos Angeles Times. “Disaster is at the doorstep.”
“The thing to do is get away from the storm — you gotta get away from what’s coming,” South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster noted, according to the newspaper. “At some point, the rescuers will not be able to rescue you.”
Steve Earley/The Virginian-Pilot via AP
Still, some people are refusing to leave. April Ellis is staying put in Goose Creek, South Carolina, because she and her fiancé will not get paid if they do not return to their jobs after the storm is over, she toldFox News.
“Being a family on a budget with a 15-year-old son and two animals, evacuating for a storm, it’s like going on a mini-vacation,” Ellis told Fox News. “It requires money that we just don’t have.”
David Goldman/AP/REX/Shutterstock
Nicklaus Cox, another South Carolina resident, added to Fox News, “Without knowing the extent of damage the hurricane could cause, we couldn’t afford to stay in a hotel for a long period of time should it come to that.”
RELATED VIDEO:Bethenny FrankelOn Helping Hurricane Victims One Year After Devastation: ‘It’s Changed My Life’
Others want to leave but are having trouble. Mark and Donna Welke — visitors to Charleston, South Carolina, from Illinois — tried to find a car to rent after their flight was cancelled,USA Todayreported.
Early on Thursday, PresidentDonald Trumptweeted, “We are completely ready for hurricane Florence, as the storm gets even larger and more powerful. Be careful!”
source: people.com
