South Carolina Evacuations For Hurricane Matthew 'Not Enough,' Gov. Says

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley said Thursday that the 175,000 people who have so far evacuated coastal areas of the state is "not enough" and urged anyone who hasn't to move inland as soon as possible. She said state officials expect at least 250,000 people to leave their homes as Hurricane Matthew charges toward land, gaining strength along the way

“That’s not enough,” Haley told reporters at her latest briefing Thursday morning about the number of evacuees so far. “We need to have more people evacuating.”

Mandatory evacuations for Charleston and Beaufort counties went into effect Wednesday. Interstate 26 reversed Eastbound lanes to get as many people out as possible, a process that Haley said “ran beautifully.” She said the average travel time to safety was about an hour and a half.

Haley told people who were considering staying put that gas stations and pharmacies are expected to close.

Horry and Georgetown counties in South Carolina were ordered to evacuate Thursday. Haley said she is considering a lane reversal on U.S. 501, but that decision has not been made yet. The I-26 reversal will continue as long as necessary.

A decision on Saturday's football game between Georgia and South Carolina, scheduled to be played in Columbia, has not yet been made.

Matthew was regained its Category 4 status before it makes landfall in Florida, officials have forecast. The storm should make landfall overnight Thursday into Friday morning before heading up the Eastern coast of the United States.

The storm is expected to hit South Carolina on Saturday morning through the night. It could bring damaging winds, flooding and storm surge to all coastal communities.

Hurricane Matthew has been blamed for at more than 100 deaths in Haiti alone since the storm began its trek through the tropics, according to the Weather Channel.

Image via NOAA