Obama declares state of emergency as 'potentially disastrous' hurricane approaches Florida

US President Barack Obama declared a state of emergency for Florida on Thursday, as the state's Gov. Rick Scott begged residents to flee from the predicted landfall of Hurricane Matthew, which is expected to be a Category 4 level when hits land, the CNBC reported.

The storm has "potentially disastrous impacts for Florida," the National Hurricane Center said in its latest update.

The storm strengthened yet again early Thursday as it moved toward the United States, where about 1.5 million people were fleeing Atlantic coastal areas. As of noon ET, the hurricane was posting maximum winds of 140 mph, according to the National Weather Service.

The declaration allows the Department of Homeland Security and Federal Emergency Management Association to aid state and local responses to Matthew, which could cause tens of billions of dollars of damage to coastal areas.

Scott emphasized in a Thursday news conference the need to flee the storm, telling residents and visitors that "this is not something you should take a chance with, time is running out" and that "there are no excuses" for staying in an evacuation zone.

Source: MENA