{"id":51389,"date":"2016-10-06T21:24:27","date_gmt":"2016-10-07T01:24:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/?p=51389"},"modified":"2016-10-06T21:37:29","modified_gmt":"2016-10-07T01:37:29","slug":"51389","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/?p=51389","title":{"rendered":"Hurricane Matthew, now a Category 4 storm, forces evacuations as it approaches Florida"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>By Mark Berman and Renae Merle<br \/>\nThe Washington Post<br \/>\n<!--more--><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/imrs.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-51397\" src=\"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/imrs-1017x1024.jpg\" alt=\"imrs\" width=\"640\" height=\"644\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/imrs-1017x1024.jpg 1017w, https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/imrs-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/imrs-298x300.jpg 298w, https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/imrs-768x773.jpg 768w, https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/imrs.jpg 1484w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<article>\n<div class=\"inline-content inline-photo inline-photo-normal vertical-photo modal-0\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"inline-content inline-video\">\n<div id=\"player-2591f0f6-8bca-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506-941058\" class=\"posttv-video-embed wpv-player wpv-processed wpv-share-small\" data-aspect-ratio=\"0.5621\" data-category-id=\"wirereuters\" data-duration=\"64800\" data-emoji=\"0\" data-headline=\"'This will kill you.' Fla. Gov. Scott urges evacuations ahead of Hurricane Matthew.\" data-is-truth-teller=\"0\" data-max-height=\"-1\" data-max-width=\"-1\" data-object-id=\"57f653bce4b036ab34962715\" data-show-caption=\"1\" data-show-endscreen=\"1\" data-show-promo=\"http:\/\/s3.amazonaws.com\/posttv-thumbnails-prod\/10-06-2016\/t_1475760890376_name_20161006_floridagovernor_evacuationorders_reuters.jpg\" data-uuid=\"2591f0f6-8bca-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506\" data-variants=\"0\" data-video-360=\"0\" data-youtube-id=\"VfBJ7m0P2so\" data-auto-init=\"0\" data-auto-play=\"1\" data-loading-screen=\"blackout\" data-has-been-visible=\"true\">\n<div class=\"wpv-overlay\">\n<div class=\"wpv-masthead\">\n<h3 class=\"wpv-headline franklin-light\">&#8216;This will kill you.&#8217; Fla. Gov. Scott urges evacuations ahead of Hurricane Matthew.<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/video\/c\/embed\/2591f0f6-8bca-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506\" width=\"480\" height=\"290\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<article>JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2014 The strongest storm system to threaten the United States in a decade\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/post-nation\/wp\/2016\/10\/05\/as-hurricane-matthew-approaches-southern-states-declare-emergencies-warn-of-potential-massive-destruction\/?utm_term=.8cbd6b8d61ba\" target=\"_blank\">roared toward Florida<\/a>\u00a0on Thursday, forcing thousands from their homes and prompting dire warnings from forecasters and public officials alike.Floridians hunkered down Thursday as pelting\u00a0rain and punishing wind began to pummel\u00a0the state, the first sting of a deadly hurricane\u00a0expected to grind its way up the coast overnight and through most of the day\u00a0Friday.Gov. Rick Scott (R) repeatedly pleaded with residents to take the storm seriously, urging the 1.5 million Floridians in\u00a0evacuation zones to leave and describing Hurricane Matthew in increasingly blunt terms as he tried to describe the peril.\u201cThis is serious,\u201d Scott said during one of his briefings Thursday. \u201cThis storm will kill you. Time is running out.\u201dMatthew <a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/world\/haiti-rescue-teams-reach-out-to-devastated-areas-cut-off-by-massive-hurricane\/2016\/10\/06\/1b5fcf9c-8b3c-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506_story.html\" target=\"_blank\">tore through Haiti<\/a> this week and caused nearly 300 deaths just in the southern part of that country, officials said, before pushing across the Bahamas and threatening to strafe a\u00a0stretch of the East Coast that runs from South Florida to North\u00a0Carolina.<\/p>\n<p class=\"interstitial-link\"><i>[<a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/capital-weather-gang\/wp\/2016\/10\/06\/hurricane-matthew-will-deal-a-devastating-blow-to-the-florida-coast\/\">Category 4 Hurricane Matthew will deal a devastating blow to the Florida coast<\/a>]<\/i><\/p>\n<div class=\"inline-content inline-video\">\n<div id=\"player-a80304c4-8c0d-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506-839986\" class=\"posttv-video-embed wpv-player wpv-processed wpv-share-small\" data-aspect-ratio=\"0.5625\" data-category-id=\"storyful\" data-duration=\"86954\" data-emoji=\"0\" data-headline=\"Coast Guard conducts aerial assessment of hurricane damage in Haiti\" data-is-truth-teller=\"0\" data-max-height=\"-1\" data-max-width=\"-1\" data-object-id=\"57f6c501e4b036ab349672ee\" data-show-caption=\"1\" data-show-endscreen=\"1\" data-show-promo=\"http:\/\/videos.posttv.com\/washpost-production\/U_S._Coast_Guard\/20161006\/57f6c501e4b036ab349672ee\/57f6c512e4b037a240c7a986_1455589917779-yrd15k_t_1475790193415_640_360_400.gif\" data-uuid=\"a80304c4-8c0d-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506\" data-variants=\"1\" data-video-360=\"0\" data-youtube-id=\"KpzkM6Mt3Sc\" data-auto-init=\"0\" data-auto-play=\"1\" data-loading-screen=\"blackout\" data-has-been-visible=\"true\">\n<div class=\"wpv-overlay\">\n<div class=\"wpv-masthead\">\n<h3 class=\"wpv-headline franklin-light\">Coast Guard conducts aerial assessment of hurricane damage in Haiti<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/video\/c\/embed\/a80304c4-8c0d-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506\" width=\"480\" height=\"290\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<article>Even as the storm continued its unceasing approach, there\u00a0were measures of good news Thursday. Broward and Miami-Dade counties, the most populous in Florida, both appeared likely to avoid the brunt of the storm. The National Weather Service on Thursday night downgraded the hurricane warning in Broward to a tropical storm warning.As Matthew approached,\u00a0life\u2019s normal routines across the southeastern coast gave way to the bedlam\u00a0of a looming storm. Emergencies were declared, evacuations ordered, schools closed, scores of flights grounded\u00a0and\u00a0college football games canceled or postponed.Authorities stressed the dangers of the storm, while the National Hurricane Center issued a series of foreboding bulletins warning of \u201cpotentially disastrous impacts for Florida\u201d and \u201clife-threatening\u201d flooding over the coming days in that state as well as\u00a0Georgia and the Carolinas. The National Weather Service warned that the gusting winds could leave some places \u201cuninhabitable for weeks or months.\u201dWhile the storm had weakened at one point during its journey, by Thursday it had\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/capital-weather-gang\/wp\/2016\/10\/06\/hurricane-matthew-will-deal-a-devastating-blow-to-the-florida-coast\/\" target=\"_blank\">surged to a Category 4 hurricane<\/a> with maximum sustained winds of\u00a0140 mph.As rain began to fall in Florida, all eyes looked east as\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/capital-weather-gang\/wp\/2016\/10\/06\/in-focus-the-unprecedented-hurricane-disaster-facing-the-east-coast-of-florida\/?postshare=2281475774211088&amp;tid=ss_tw\" target=\"_blank\">the unprecedented storm<\/a> slowly approached. Hurricane conditions could extend into Georgia and South Carolina by Saturday, the National Hurricane Center warned.<\/p>\n<div class=\"inline-content inline-video\">\n<div id=\"player-2e548318-8beb-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506-92796\" class=\"posttv-video-embed wpv-player wpv-processed wpv-share-small\" data-aspect-ratio=\"0.5625\" data-category-id=\"segments\" data-duration=\"92736\" data-emoji=\"0\" data-headline=\"Florida residents anticipate Hurricane Matthew's arrival\" data-is-truth-teller=\"0\" data-max-height=\"-1\" data-max-width=\"-1\" data-object-id=\"57f68b28e4b036ab34965114\" data-show-caption=\"1\" data-show-endscreen=\"1\" data-show-promo=\"http:\/\/videos.posttv.com\/washpost-production\/The_Washington_Post\/20161006\/57f68b28e4b036ab34965114\/57f68b41e4b037a240c7a88f_1455589917779-yrd15k_t_1475775397810_640_360_400.gif\" data-uuid=\"2e548318-8beb-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506\" data-variants=\"0\" data-video-360=\"0\" data-youtube-id=\"O83658-HCAg\" data-auto-init=\"0\" data-auto-play=\"1\" data-loading-screen=\"blackout\" data-has-been-visible=\"true\">\n<div class=\"wpv-overlay\">\n<div class=\"wpv-masthead\">\n<h3 class=\"wpv-headline franklin-light\">Florida residents anticipate Hurricane Matthew&#8217;s arrival<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/video\/c\/embed\/2e548318-8beb-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506\" width=\"480\" height=\"290\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<article>More\u00a0than 2.5 million people were under evacuation orders from Florida to South Carolina, most of them in Florida, where the state opened <a href=\"http:\/\/www.floridadisaster.org\/shelters\/summary.htm\" target=\"_blank\">dozens of shelters<\/a>\u00a0to house them.President Obama signed emergency declarations for\u00a0Florida and South Carolina, ordering federal aid and allowing federal authorities to coordinate disaster relief efforts.Scott had already declared a state of emergency in Florida, as have his counterparts in Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina. Obama spoke by telephone with all four governors Thursday to discuss preparations for the storm, saying he is committed to providing the federal resources needed to respond, the White House said.Across the southeast, waves of schools shuttered their campuses and closed government offices.\u00a0Colleges from Florida International University in Miami and the University of Central Florida in Orlando canceled classes, as did schools as far north as the University of South Carolina and the College of Charleston.<\/p>\n<p class=\"interstitial-link\"><i>[<a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/world\/haiti-rescue-teams-reach-out-to-devastated-areas-cut-off-by-massive-hurricane\/2016\/10\/06\/1b5fcf9c-8b3c-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506_story.html\">Hurricane Matthew death toll rises above 100 as Haiti tallies devastation<\/a>]<\/i><\/p>\n<p>The University of Florida called off\u00a0its game against Louisiana State on Saturday, and Central Florida postponed a scheduled football game against Tulane. Other major college games scheduled over the weekend \u2014 in Columbia, S.C., and Miami \u2014 remained tentatively on the calendar as planned.<\/p>\n<p>Airlines canceled more than 2,800 flights\u00a0set\u00a0to travel through Florida\u2019s airports on Thursday and Friday, according to<a href=\"http:\/\/flightaware.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">FlightAware.com<\/a>. Even mainstays of Florida life were impacted: Walt Disney World said it would close early on Thursday and remain closed Friday, as did SeaWorld in Orlando and Universal\u2019s parks.<\/p>\n<div class=\"inline-content inline-photo inline-photo-normal modal-1 horizontal-photo\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"courtesy-of-the-resizer zoom-in\" src=\"http:\/\/img.washingtonpost.com\/wp-apps\/imrs.php?src=http:\/\/img.washingtonpost.com\/rf\/image_606w\/2010-2019\/WashingtonPost\/2016\/10\/06\/Foreign\/Images\/Tropical_Weather-0aa7d.jpg&amp;w=1484\" data-hi-res-src=\"http:\/\/img.washingtonpost.com\/wp-apps\/imrs.php?src=http:\/\/img.washingtonpost.com\/rf\/image_606w\/2010-2019\/WashingtonPost\/2016\/10\/06\/Foreign\/Images\/Tropical_Weather-0aa7d.jpg&amp;w=1484\" data-low-res-src=\"http:\/\/img.washingtonpost.com\/wp-apps\/imrs.php?src=http:\/\/img.washingtonpost.com\/rf\/image_606w\/2010-2019\/WashingtonPost\/2016\/10\/06\/Foreign\/Images\/Tropical_Weather-0aa7d.jpg&amp;w=480\" data-raw-src=\"http:\/\/img.washingtonpost.com\/rf\/image_606w\/2010-2019\/WashingtonPost\/2016\/10\/06\/Foreign\/Images\/Tropical_Weather-0aa7d.jpg\" \/><\/div>\n<p>Floridians\u00a0either fled their homes or huddled with supplies after making the customary last-minute trips to Publix for bottled water, bread and peanut butter.\u00a0In some cases, people headed inland or to safer ground with friends or family, while others planned to have hurricane parties to pass the hours spent locked down.<\/p>\n<p>In Volusia County along Florida\u2019s central Atlantic coastline, more than 2,000 residents sought refuge in schools. Dozens of residents outside Hinson Middle School in Daytona Beach were turned away when it had filled to capacity by mid-morning\u00a0and\u00a0were referred to others in the area.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis isn\u2019t Katrina,\u201d Garry Winterrowd of Daytona Beach said. \u201cThey are treating us well here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>For Michelle Adoga, a 16-year-old college student from Nigeria, the storm marked her first experience with a hurricane. With her family across the globe, Adoga reclined on a table in the school\u2019s cafeteria listening to music on her cellphone.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe don\u2019t have hurricanes in Nigeria,\u201d Adoga said. \u201cI didn\u2019t even know what a hurricane was until yesterday.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Scott said Thursday he had activated more than 3,500 Florida National Guard members, but he told residents not to view them as an escape valve for\u00a0anyone who decides not to evacuate.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe should not be putting people\u2019s lives at risk because you made the foolish decision not to evacuate,\u201d he said during a briefing Thursday afternoon.<\/p>\n<p>Interstate 95 through northern Florida appeared largely abandoned during the afternoon rush hour. Drivers heading away from Jacksonville, the south\u2019s most populous city, heeded warnings from Scott and other officials that they had heard before.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI wasn\u2019t going to leave, but it is starting to look bad,\u201d said Elaine Green, 68, a retired registered nurse, at a rest stop south of Jacksonville, where she lives near the beach. \u201cThis could be like all the other times. They always say evacuate, evacuate. \u2026 If it bad as they say, then, okay, I will be glad I left.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In Jacksonville\u2019s Riverside-Avondale neighborhood, west of downtown, residents talked over whether to leave with their neighbors.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m getting the hell out of here,\u201d said a tall, pony-tailed man\u00a0stuffing loose clothes and towels and blankets into his Chevy SUV. \u201cI\u2019m packing up my dog and getting out of here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Forecasters warned of broad dangers posed by what they called\u00a0a \u201clife-threatening\u201d storm, the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/capital-weather-gang\/wp\/2016\/10\/04\/east-coast-on-high-alert-after-matthew-strikes-haiti-as-strongest-hurricane-in-52-years\/\" target=\"_blank\">first major hurricane<\/a> to hit the United States since Wilma in 2005. Last month, Hurricane Hermine had slammed into Florida\u2019s Gulf Coast before it was\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/post-nation\/wp\/2016\/09\/01\/florida-empties-popular-labor-day-site-ahead-of-hurricane-hermine\/?utm_term=.99b0f97cf664\" target=\"_blank\">quickly downgraded<\/a>\u00a0to a tropical storm.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/imrs-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-51398 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/imrs-1-1017x1024.jpg\" alt=\"imrs\" width=\"640\" height=\"644\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/imrs-1-1017x1024.jpg 1017w, https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/imrs-1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/imrs-1-298x300.jpg 298w, https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/imrs-1-768x773.jpg 768w, https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/imrs-1.jpg 1484w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"inline-content inline-graphic-embedded modal-2\"><\/div>\n<p>Before the storm made it to Florida, the\u00a0Bahamas took a punishing blow on Thursday after a slight wobble in the track kept\u00a0Matthew\u2019s strong inner core among the islands longer than expected. Matthew blasted Nassau with extreme wind gusts of at least 100 mph that toppled palm trees and ripped the roofs off homes. The wind was\u00a0so strong that the country\u2019s official weather stations went offline during the peak of the storm, making direct observations nearly impossible.<\/p>\n<p>The hurricane appears to be <a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/capital-weather-gang\/wp\/2016\/10\/06\/in-focus-the-unprecedented-hurricane-disaster-facing-the-east-coast-of-florida\/?postshare=2281475774211088&amp;tid=ss_tw\" target=\"_blank\">without comparison in modern Florida history<\/a>\u00a0for eastern and central Florida, and could lead to multi-billion dollar damages across the state, according to the Capital Weather Gang.<\/p>\n<p>Florida Power and Light, the state\u2019s utility, warned that up to 2.5 million people could lose power, and warned that some could face \u201cextended outages as we rebuild parts of the grid.\u201d\u00a0The National Weather Service warned that gusting winds in parts of the state\u2019s eastern coast could lead to structural damage to numerous homes.<\/p>\n<p class=\"interstitial-link\"><i>[<a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/capital-weather-gang\/wp\/2016\/10\/05\/thrown-for-a-loop-matthews-forecast-track-could-rank-among-weirdos-in-hurricane-history\/\">Thrown for a loop: Matthew\u2019s forecast track could rank among \u2018weirdos\u2019 in hurricane history<\/a>]<\/i><\/p>\n<p>As people flooded the roads to get out of town, air travel was severely restricted by the looming storm. American Airlines <a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/dr-gridlock\/wp\/2016\/10\/05\/american-airlines-cancels-flights-ahead-of-hurricane-matthew\/\" target=\"_blank\">canceled flights Thursday<\/a>\u00a0through the three South Florida airports and called off travel through Orlando after 5:30 p.m. Airlines announced waivers letting travelers change\u00a0flights\u00a0without paying any penalty.<\/p>\n<div class=\"inline-content inline-gallery-embedded\">\n<div class=\"pb-container\">\n<div id=\"fA0cSO1qgAmx7p\" class=\"pb-feature-ssi-single pb-3 pb-feature pb-layout-item pb-f-gallery-gallery\" data-pb-feature-config=\"gallery\/gallery\">\n<div id=\"gallery_11614\" class=\"wp-volt-gal wp-volt-gal-p-end-circular wp-volt-gal-promo-stub wp-volt-gal-on-promo-slide wp-volt-gal-embed-promo wp-volt-gal-embed-promo-hide wp-volt-gal-filters-enabled\" data-blurb=\"The strongest storm system to threaten the U.S. in a decade roared toward landfall in Florida. More than 2.5 million people were under evacuation orders from Florida to South Carolina.\" data-category=\"National-Enterprise\" data-commercial-node=\"national\" data-debug=\"false\" data-first-published=\"1475791860\" data-keywords=\"[Hurricane Matthew, Florida, Matthew, Atlantic, hurricanes, Atlantic storm, Florida hurricane]\" data-permalink=\"http:\/\/js.washingtonpost.com\/national\/hurricane-matthew-takes-aim-at-florida-southeast-us\/2016\/10\/06\/c337c624-8c0a-11e6-bf8a-3d26847eeed4_gallery.html\" data-preroll-zone=\"\" data-published=\"1475797920\" data-section=\"national\" data-show-interstitials=\"true\" data-show-preroll=\"true\" data-slug=\"hurricane-matthew-takes-aim-at-florida-southeast-us\" data-subsection=\"\" data-title=\"Hurricane Matthew takes aim at Florida, southeast U.S.\" data-uuid=\"c337c624-8c0a-11e6-bf8a-3d26847eeed4\">\n<p><span class=\"wp-article-sharing\"><span class=\"wp-tooltip-button wp-article-embed\"><span class=\"wp-tooltip\"><span class=\"wp-sharing-copy\"><span class=\"wp-sharing-copy-input-wrap\"><input class=\"wp-sharing-copy-input\" style=\"box-sizing: border-box; font-family: FranklinITCProLight, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px; line-height: normal; padding: 0px 0px 0px 12px; border: 0px; float: left; width: 119px; height: 30px; display: table-cell; border-radius: 3px 0px 0px 3px; color: #000000; background: #ffffff; position: absolute;\" type=\"text\" value=\"&lt;iframe width='480' height='700' scrolling='no' src='http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/national\/hurricane-matthew-takes-aim-at-florida-southeast-us\/2016\/10\/06\/c337c624-8c0a-11e6-bf8a-3d26847eeed4_gallery.html?_template=gallery-embed' frameborder='0' webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen allowfullscreen&gt;&lt;\/iframe&gt;\" \/><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-volt-gal-embed-promo-container\">\n<div class=\"wp-volt-gal-embed-promo-container-table\">\n<div class=\"wp-volt-gal-embed-promo-top\">\n<h3 class=\"promo-top-title\">Hurric<br \/>\nMatthew takes aim at Florida, southeast U.S.<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-volt-gal-embed-promo-mid\">\n<div class=\"cell\">\n<div class=\"wp-volt-gal-embed-promo-mid-img-container\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/img.washingtonpost.com\/rf\/image_606w\/2010-2019\/WashingtonPost\/2016\/10\/06\/National-Enterprise\/Images\/AFP_GX0YF.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/div>\n<h5 class=\"wp-volt-gal-embed-promo-mid-label\"><\/h5>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h5 class=\"wp-volt-gal-embed-promo-bottom\"><span class=\"cell\">The strongest storm system to threaten the U.S. in a decade roared toward landfall in Florida. More than 2.5 million people were under evacuation orders from Florida to South Carolina.<\/span><\/h5>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>At the Jacksonville airport on Thursday, Arnold Paredes spent hours devising a way to get to Panama after his connection through Miami was canceled and his attempts at booking another flight were frustrated by the storm.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe planned this trip for a year,\u201d said Arnold, 42, while\u00a0his wife, who said she had given up before they left their home this morning, flipped through a magazine. \u201cVacation, to get away from everything.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He planned to rent a car and head inland to find an open airport. \u201cI am not ready to give up,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"interstitial-link\"><i>[<a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/post-nation\/wp\/2016\/10\/05\/as-hurricane-matthew-approaches-southern-states-declare-emergencies-warn-of-potential-massive-destruction\/?utm_term=.8cbd6b8d61ba\">Hurricane Matthew\u2019s \u2018impacts will be devastating,\u2019 Florida governor says<\/a>]<\/i><\/p>\n<p>Further south in coastal Broward County, a crowd kept swimming and surfing in the churning waters off\u00a0Fort Lauderdale\u2019s beaches.<\/p>\n<p>In coastal Broward County, winds peaked at nearly 60 miles per hour Thursday afternoon, according to local reports. The entire county remained under a voluntary evacuation advisory as Florida\u2019s east coast braced for Hurricane Matthew\u2019s impact. That didn\u2019t stop a crowd of unapologetic enthusiasts from swimming and surfing in the churning waters of Fort Lauderdale\u2019s beaches.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHurricanes are the only time we get waves,\u201d said Gia Tsavalos, 34, who lives west of Delray Beach. Tsavalos was riding the waves and ignoring officials\u2019 safety warnings in Fort Lauderdale after being chased off a beach in nearby Hollywood by a lifeguard patrol.<\/p>\n<p>Near the beach,\u00a0Dwayne Bennett, 40, of Tamarac, brought his children \u2014 Amaya, 5, and Jayden, 11 \u2014 to see the natural spectacle.\u00a0\u201cWe were bored at home,\u201d said Bennett, who declined the requests from his children to go swimming.<\/p>\n<p>Just across the street, patrons in flip-flops and undershirts gathered at the Elbo Room, a popular bar.\u00a0Shirtless young men rode their bikes around town and, just west of the beach, fishermen sheathed in bright yellow raincoats cast their fishing lines into canals.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s not that we don\u2019t respect the storm. We do,\u201d said Buddy Mountcastle, 48, of Margate. \u201cMy home is all boarded up. We\u2019re protected.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While Florida prepared for the country\u2019s first brush with Matthew, other states were getting ready for the storm to rake across their communities.<\/p>\n<p>South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) followed the evacuations of\u00a0Charleston and Beaufort counties\u00a0\u2014 home to more than half a million people\u00a0\u2014 with more evacuation orders along some of the state\u2019s coastal areas.<\/p>\n<p>Authorities in South Carolina also said voters there would extend deadlines for voter registration, a move that came amid questions about how the storm would impact the upcoming presidential election. Scott said Thursday that <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/aseitzwald\/status\/784178507052093440\" target=\"_blank\">he would not<\/a> extend voting registration due to the storm.<\/p>\n<p>In Georgia, Gov.\u00a0Nathan Deal (R) announced\u00a0mandatory evacuations in six of the state\u2019s coastal counties, <a href=\"http:\/\/gov.georgia.gov\/sites\/gov.georgia.gov\/files\/related_files\/press_release\/Georgia%20Mandatory%20Evacuations%20map.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">a stretch east of Interstate 95<\/a>\u00a0with\u00a0more than 530,000 residents. North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory (R) said he remained \u201ccautiously optimistic\u201d about the hurricane\u2019s\u00a0projected impact on his state, but said residents were not in the clear yet and asked them to keep monitoring the storm.<\/p>\n<div class=\"inline-content inline-video\">\n<div id=\"player-391629f6-8bdb-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506-972911\" class=\"posttv-video-embed wpv-player wpv-processed wpv-share-small\" data-aspect-ratio=\"0.5625\" data-category-id=\"wirereuters\" data-duration=\"44480\" data-emoji=\"0\" data-headline=\"'Don't be fooled by the eye of the storm' N.C. governor warns residents about Matthew\" data-is-truth-teller=\"0\" data-max-height=\"-1\" data-max-width=\"-1\" data-object-id=\"57f6705ee4b036ab34963ec1\" data-show-caption=\"1\" data-show-endscreen=\"1\" data-show-promo=\"http:\/\/s3.amazonaws.com\/posttv-thumbnails-prod\/thumbnails\/57f6705ee4b036ab34963ec1\/20161006_hurricanematthew_guyonbike_florida_reuters.jpg\" data-uuid=\"391629f6-8bdb-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506\" data-variants=\"0\" data-video-360=\"0\" data-youtube-id=\"f4kXS-gfNjI\" data-auto-init=\"0\" data-auto-play=\"1\" data-loading-screen=\"blackout\" data-has-been-visible=\"true\">\n<div class=\"wpv-overlay\">\n<div class=\"wpv-masthead\">\n<h3 class=\"wpv-headline franklin-light\">&#8216;Don&#8217;t be fooled by the eye of the storm&#8217; N.C. governor warns residents about Matthew<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/video\/c\/embed\/391629f6-8bdb-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506\" width=\"480\" height=\"290\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<article>On Wednesday, Obama had scrapped two planned events in Florida on Wednesday and visited the Federal Emergency Management Agency\u2019s headquarters in Washington for a hurricane briefing instead. He urged residents to be ready and pay attention to warnings from authorities.\u201cEven if you don\u2019t get the full force of the hurricane, we are still going to be seeing tropical force winds, the potential for a storm surge, and all of that could have a devastating effect,\u201d he said after the briefing.<\/p>\n<p class=\"interstitial-link\"><i>[<a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/capital-weather-gang\/wp\/2016\/10\/05\/its-not-hype-hurricane-matthew-has-been-blasting-through-records\/\">It\u2019s not hype. Matthew has been blasting through records.<\/a>]<\/i><\/p>\n<p>Floridians readying for the storm are a mix of veterans who have been through this before and those unaccustomed to the routines after the state has seen an influx of new residents in the years since Wilma.<\/p>\n<p>At a Home Depot near Stirling Road in Hollywood, two employees secured seven sturdy pieces of plywood to the roof of black Hyundai sedan.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt took us about three hours to get in and out,\u201d Alex Ozenaski said outside a Home Depot in Hollywood while two employees secured plywood to the roof of his black Hyundai. \u201cWe had just moved to South Florida when Hurricane Wilma hit in 2005. We weren\u2019t prepared. This time, we are almost prepared.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"inline-content inline-video\">\n<div id=\"player-5b1d193e-8ba3-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506-786152\" class=\"posttv-video-embed wpv-player wpv-processed wpv-share-small\" data-aspect-ratio=\"0.5625\" data-category-id=\"segments\" data-duration=\"99264\" data-emoji=\"0\" data-headline=\"After 37 years, Hurricane Matthew reunited this couple\" data-is-truth-teller=\"0\" data-max-height=\"-1\" data-max-width=\"-1\" data-object-id=\"57f612a8e4b036ab3496036e\" data-show-caption=\"1\" data-show-endscreen=\"1\" data-show-promo=\"http:\/\/s3.amazonaws.com\/posttv-thumbnails-prod\/10-06-2016\/t_1475744413465_name_melbournelove_1006_1.jpg\" data-uuid=\"5b1d193e-8ba3-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506\" data-variants=\"1\" data-video-360=\"0\" data-youtube-id=\"fT1wsNy7Gw8\" data-auto-init=\"0\" data-auto-play=\"1\" data-loading-screen=\"blackout\" data-has-been-visible=\"true\">\n<div class=\"wpv-overlay\">\n<div class=\"wpv-masthead\">\n<h3 class=\"wpv-headline franklin-light\">After 37 years, Hurricane Matthew reunited this couple<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/video\/c\/embed\/5b1d193e-8ba3-11e6-8cdc-4fbb1973b506\" width=\"480\" height=\"290\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<article><em>Berman reported from Washington. Jason Samenow, Angela Fritz,\u00a0Lori Aratani and Susan Hogan in Washington;Joshua Partlow in Haiti; Francisco Alvarado in Miami Beach, Fla.; Susan Cooper Eastman in Jacksonville; Lacey McLaughlin in Daytona Beach, Fla.; and Tal Abbady in Fort Lauderdale contributed to this report. This story, first published at 8:53 a.m., is being continuously updated. \u00a0<\/em><\/article>\n<article><\/article>\n<article>___<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/post-nation\/wp\/2016\/10\/06\/hurricane-matthew-intensifies-as-florida-governor-orders-1-5-million-to-evacuate\/?utm_term=.cfbab792bf1b\">http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/post-nation\/wp\/2016\/10\/06\/hurricane-matthew-intensifies-as-florida-governor-orders-1-5-million-to-evacuate\/?utm_term=.cfbab792bf1b<\/a><\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Mark Berman and Renae Merle The Washington Post<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-51389","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51389","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=51389"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51389\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=51389"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=51389"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation2012.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=51389"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}