Hurricane Matthew: Gov. Deal Declares State of Emergency on Georgia Coast

ATLANTA, GA — Gov. Nathan Deal signed an executive order Tuesday declaring a state of emergency in 13 coastal Georgia counties as Hurricane Matthew approaches.

The National Hurricane Center forecasts that Matthew will be tracking dangerously close to the southeastern corner of the state later this week.

"Hurricane Matthew is forecast to potentially impact the Georgia coast within 72 hours," Deal said in a news release. "While the exact effects are unknown at this time, I’ve issued an emergency declaration for coastal counties effective October 5 and extending for seven days."

Deal said he has ordered the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency to work with appropriate state and local agencies "to ensure all precautions are taken to protect residents and minimize risks to property and roads."

"The safety of Georgians is our first priority, and we urge residents in these areas to remain calm but vigilant as they prepare for potential impact," Deal added.

The state of emergency includes the following 13 counties: Brantley, Bryan, Bulloch, Camden, Charlton, Chatham, Effingham, Evans, Glynn, Liberty, Long, McIntosh and Wayne.

Hurricane Matthew is a solid Category 4 storm that the National Hurricane Center expects to "hit far eastern Cuba hard" later Tuesday.

As of 2 p.m., it was located about 65 miles east-southeast of Guantanamo, Cuba, and moving north at 10 mph.

Matthew was packing sustained winds of 145 mph and dubbed "extremely dangerous" by the hurricane center.

On its current projected path, Matthew could make landfall anywhere along Florida's Atlantic coast or the far southern edge of coastal Georgia.

Images via National Hurricane Center