US President Barack Obama declared a state of emergency in Florida as predictions for Hurricane Matthew's impact on the state grew more severe on Thursday afternoon.
The declaration was extended to South Carolina a short time later, The Associated Press reported.
Meteorologists are predicting a "catastrophic" storm impact "unlike any hurricane in the modern era," with widespread severe flooding.
In a Thursday-afternoon press conference, Gov. Rick Scott pointed evacuating Floridians to FL511 for updates on evacuation routes and traffic.
Matthew was already poised to be a historic, dangerous storm. Then, at 2 p.m., the National Hurricane Center bulletin upgraded the storm surge warning for parts of the state to 7 to 11 feet. That is an extremely rare, high, and powerful wall of water headed for Florida's coasts and rivers.
This map, released earlier today when predictions topped out at 6 to 9 feet, shows areas in danger of flooding — with water deep enough to crest above Shaquille O'Neal's head:
Potential flooding on St. John's River in Florida is a reminder that surge is not just a coastal event. #HurricaneMatthew pic.twitter.com/dnSShded0C
— NHC_Surge (@NHC_Surge) October 6, 2016 Here's a look at the storm from the National Hurricane Center's latest update (updated at 5 p.m. ET):
Tropical storm warnings now extend north up to the North Carolina coastline. Hurricane warnings are in place throughout much of Florida's, Georgia's, and South Carolina's coastlines.
A visualization of storm movement between Thursday evening and Friday morning:
A massive Category 4 hurricane is barreling toward Florida coastline -- no fizzling. #Matthew pic.twitter.com/V35dk606cm
— Ryan Maue (@RyanMaue) October 6, 2016 ("No fizzling" refers to the fact that Matthew does not appear likely to significantly weaken.)
Obama's declaration will release federal aid to local, state, and tribal response efforts to the storm, which should make landfall as a Category 4 or Category 5 monster. Wind speeds are currently 140 mph, far beyond what many structures are built to withstand.
Matthew is so dangerous because it threatens to deliver that kind of power, unprecedented in central Florida's recorded history, over a period of several hours as it moves up the coast Friday and Saturday. Georgia and South Carolina also face severe wind and flooding threats.
Truly dire warning from @NWSMelbourne ahead of Matthew: “If a direct landfall occurs this will be unlike any hurricane in the modern era”(!) pic.twitter.com/t67xIOHEIc
— Jon Passantino (@passantino) October 6, 2016 "Simply put: If Florida's disaster preparedness officials wanted to script a worst-case scenario for the state, it would look a lot like Hurricane Matthew," meteorologist Eric Holthaus wrote for Pacific Standard. "This is a nightmare hurricane."
There's also good reason to believe that NASA's $11 billion Kennedy Space Center complex, which is not built to withstand Matthew-intensity winds, could face severe damage.
Hard to overstate implications of catastrophic damage at @NASAKennedy
SLS ground systems
2 SpaceX pads
ULA pads
Commerical crew
Blue Origin
— Eric Berger (@SciGuySpace) October 6, 2016 Much of Florida is under an evacuation order, and Scott has urged residents in some areas to flee.
This article was updated with new maps and extended warnings at 5 p.m. ET.
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