Hurricane Florence: Heavy rains, catastrophic flash floods predicted as Carolinas brace for worst storm in 60 years

The Category 4 storm has maximum sustained winds of 140 miles per hour and is already 500 miles wide

UPDATED SEP 11, 2018

Category 4 Hurricane Florence, which is expected to strike North and South Carolina soon, will be the worst storm to hit the state in 64 years. Reports state that Florence has gained more strength than Hurricane Hazel in 1954. Hazel destroyed nearly 15,000 buildings when it hit the state over 60 years ago.

The governors of North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and Maryland on Monday declared a state of emergency as over one million people were ordered to evacuate their homes along the coasts before the "dangerous" storm makes landfall.

In this NOAA satellite handout image, shows Hurricane Florence as it travels west and gains strength in the Atlantic Ocean southeast of Bermuda on September 10, 2018. Weather predictions say the storm will likely hit the U.S. East Coast as early as Thursday, September 13 bringing massive winds and rain.