Hurricane Matthew Re-Designated Category 4 as it Bears Down on Florida

Hurricane Matthew Re-Designated Category 4 as it Bears Down on Florida

Hurricane Matthew has been re-designated a Category 4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Scale with maximum sustained winds of 140 miles per hour.

NOAA’s National Hurricane Center is calling this an “extremely dangerous” hurricane that is forecast to make landfall or near-landfall in Florida by tonight. Governor Rick Scott said on Wednesday that “Everyone in [Florida] must prepare for a direct hit.” If it hits Florida, Hurricane Matthew will be the first hurricane to hit the state since Hurricane Wilma in 2005, which exacted extensive damage.

Public Advisories

About 12 million US residents are under hurricane warnings and watches in Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina.

Here’s the breakdown of public advisories from NOAA’s National Hurricane Center (NHC) in decreasing order of severity:

• Hurricane Warning:
  • Central Bahamas
  • Northwestern Bahamas
  • Florida (North of Golden Beach) to Georgia (Altamaha Sound)
• Hurricane Watch:
  • Georgia (North of Altamaha Sound) to South Carolina (South Santee River)
• Tropical Storm Warning:
  • Florida (Chokoloskee to Golden Beach; Florida kees from Sevel Mile Bridge eastward; Florida Bay)
• Tropical Storm Watch:
  • Florida (north of Chokoloskee to Suwannee River)

Evacuations and Emergency Declarations

• Emergencies declared in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina
• Florida: 1.5 million residents in evacuation zones and State of Emergency declared. See evacuation zone here
• Georgia: See evacuation zone here
• South Carolina: See evacuation zone here

Related Stories

• NY Times regularly updated tracking of Hurricane Matthew: link
• Miami Herald (Florida) live coverage of Hurricane Matthew: link
• Savannah Morning News (Georgia) ongoing coverage of Hurricane Matthew: link
• South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley said as of 10:00am Thursday morning that the 175,000 residents whom have evacuated coastal communities is “not enough”: link
• Remember, Ready.gov provides information on how to prepare for a storm and how to keep you and your family safe: link
• Americares, a non-profit disaster relief and global health organization providing immediate response to emergency medical needs, has mobilized immediate response teams to provide care for Hurricane Matthew survivors: link

Hagerty Consulting is an emergency management consulting firm that helps our clients prepare for and recover from disasters. Established in 2001, Hagerty’s work includes some of the nation’s largest recovery and preparedness projects in more than 30 states, including 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, and Hurricane Sandy.

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