The latest information on Hurricane Irene shows the storm is tracking slightly back to the west.
What that means for the immediate area, Halifax County Assistant County Manager Dia Denton said following an emergency management conference call, is tropical force winds and heavy rain bands.
While it does not appear the storm will generate catastrophic winds, Denton said people should still prepare for power outages and have emergency supplies on hand. “We won't see the brunt of it unless it tracks further west.”
Denton said the area can expect 1 to 2 inches of rain as the storm begins moving through on Saturday.
Halifax County is on notice to open am emergency shelter for Dare County evacuees should the county give an evacuation order, Denton said. That shelter will at the T.J. Davis Recreation Center.
Meanwhile, WRAL reported today a hurricane watch was issued for North Carolina's Outer Banks as tens of thousands of tourists and residents were told to leave the state's coast ahead of Hurricane Irene.
Dare County ordered visitors to leave Thursday and residents to leave Friday. Currituck County issued a state of emergency and ordered all tourists to leave Thursday.
North Carolina's hurricane watch extends from north of Surf City to the Virginia border. A hurricane watch means hurricane conditions are possible within 36 hours.
Early today, the first hurricane of the Atlantic season had maximum sustained winds swirling at 115 mph and moving northwest near 12 mph over the Bahamas. Its track has it possibly hitting the Outer Banks by Saturday.
Gov. Bev Perdue said Thursday that Irene "is packing a strong wind."
"We don’t know where this track will end up, but at this time we all have to take this storm seriously," she said.
Perdue said FEMA is standing by, the National Guard is deployed, the Red Cross is on the ground and volunteers are in position to help with disaster relief should it be needed.
She said she was disappointed to see how slowly the evacuation of Ocracoke began yesterday.
"I understand that folks don't take it seriously, but Ocracoke is sitting out there in the middle of the water, and if you have a 115 mph wind – it may not be that much, I'm not trying to over-exaggerate – you just don't know," she said.
State Emergency Management director Doug Hoell said the evacuation was picking up speed and running smoothly.
Federal officials have warned Irene could cause erosion, flooding, power outages or worse all along the coast even if it stays offshore.
It's been more than seven years since a major hurricane, considered a Category 3 with winds of at least 111 mph, hit the East Coast. Hurricane Jeanne came ashore on Florida's east coast in 2004.
The last hurricane to hit the U.S. was Ike in 2008. The last Category 3 or higher to hit the Carolinas was Bonnie in 1998, but caused less damage than other memorable hurricanes: Hugo in 1989, Floyd in 1999 and Isabel in 2003.
