President Donald Trump has declared that an emergency exists in the state of Florida, with Hurricane Dorian expected to make landfall as a life-threatening Category 4 storm over the three-day US Labor Day holiday weekend, and authorized US federal agencies to provide appropriate assistance for emergency measures, the White House said in a press release on Friday.
"The President's action authorizes the Department of Homeland Security, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), to coordinate all disaster relief efforts which have the purpose of alleviating the hardship and suffering caused by the emergency on the local population, and to provide appropriate assistance for required emergency measures," the release said.
According to the National Hurricane Center, alerts have been issued for the northwestern Bahamas, where Dorian is expected to make landfall on Sunday as a Category 3 storm, before turning into a Category 4 storm in Florida by Monday.
Florida officials have been urging local residents to stock up on gas and food ahead of the upcoming storm.