The southeastern coast of the country is bracing for the potential blow of Tropical Storm Florence, who is expected to strengthen to a hurricane later tonight, Sept. 8.

According to the National Hurricane Center, Florence is “becoming better organized” and is currently maintaining maximum sustained winds of about 65 mph.

The center of Florence is forecast to move over the southwestern Atlantic Ocean between Bermuda and the Bahamas on Tuesday, Sept. 11 and Wednesday, Sept. 12. Florence is then expected to approach the southeastern U.S. coast on Thursday, Sept. 13.

“Rapid intensification is expected to start on Sunday, and Florence is forecast to be a major hurricane by Tuesday,” the NHC said in its 11 a.m. update.

Just a few hours prior to the latest NHC update, Florida Governor Rick Scott tweeted that Floridians “should stay up to date on alerts from Tropical Storm Florence” and to “stay vigilant!”

Spinnaker will continue to keep you updated as more information becomes available.

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