cnn meteorologist jennifer gray joining us live now from gulfport, mississippi, with the latest. jennifer, good morning. what are you seeing? >> reporter: good morning, guys. yeah, the storm made landfall late last night between just west of the alabama border and the center of the storm now is well north of us. it's close to hattisburg. and the rain from the storm is pretty much east of mobile, through the florida panhandle. we do have flood warnings in effect around gulf shores as well as pensacola, seeing 2 inches an hour. we're seeing the storms hitting the same spots, so a little bit of flooding going on there. also, about 2,000 people without power in mississippi. however, i think things will be quickly getting back to normal, especially around gulfport, where we are. we barely had any rain from the storm at all. most of the storm was to the east of us, so things getting back to normal here in gulfport, guys. >> all right, jennifer gray, sounds like it could have been worse. thank you. >>> all right, president trump on a twitter tirade last night, seeking to discredit a bomb

meteorologist jennifer gray will have the latest forecast in a moment.nn's diane gallacher is near camp lejeune. let's start with martin savidge at carolina beach in north carolina. nearly 2 million americans you said mandatory evacuation orders according to fema, the federal emergency management agency. time is really running out for people to take cover. >> reporter: it is almost completely gone, jake. in fact, they are down to just a handle handful of hours in many of the most vulnerable communities, the barrier islands and the beach front communities of north carolina. like here, they're saying this bridge closes at 8:00 p.m. after that, you're on your own. the warnings for this monster hurricane could not be more dire. >> north carolina, my message is clear. disaster is at the doorstep, and is coming in. >> this is going to be, you know, a mike tyson punch to the carolina coast. >> reporter: officials can't stress enough, this is the last chance to get out of its path. >> this is a dangerous storm. we ask that you heed the warnings. today's is the d

jennifer gray is tracking the storm's movements. as you watch it there, i know there were some reports that the eye is getting bigger which might be a sign of strengthening. what are you seeing? >> it is a sign of strengthening and it went through an eyewall cycle. the wall collapse and it comes back. the storms are so big and carry so much energy within them, that they can't maintain that powerful strength for so long. it's like they exhale and take a deep breath again. this is reorganizing as the big storms do. this is still a category four major hurricane. winds of 130 miles per hour. gusts of 160, moving to the west northwest at 16 miles per hour. here's a closer look and you can see it's very symmetrical. the hurricane force winds extend 40 miles from the center. this is a monster, jim. i wish people would not wait and see before they leave. the confidence is getting stronger and stronger with this storm. we do know that it is going to be making landfall by late thursday or early friday morning. it's going to get to the coast.

our meteorologist jennifer gray is joining us. jennifer, this won't be over any time soon. >> you're right. and the new forecast is actually bad news because the storm has slowed down even more, if you can imagine, now moving at only about 3 miles per hour. this storm is crawling along the coast, and that means that all of this onshore flow, all of the winds, the rain, everything moving from east to west is going to continue in that direction, so all of the flooding is going to continue, the storm surge is going to continue throughout the rest of this evening and the overnight hours as the storm continues to meander to the south. so for people already experiencing flooding, unfortunately, it is going to continue. that's what we were talking about. the storm is going to be around for a long, long time. these bands are setting up right over new bern. they've been getting the brunt of this as well as morehead city since yesterday. it's not going to come to an end any time soon. that's going to continue as this storm just inches to the

first to meteorologist jennifer gray in the cnn hurricane center. nnifer, what are we learning tonight about the storm? >> well, like you said, the storm has strengthened. the first warnings have gone out. the hurricane warning, all of these areas shaded in red from central portions of south carolina all the way up the north carolina coast, and they extend very far inland. you can see that right there. all hurricane watches in effect, tropical storm watches, and so this is becoming very real for people in the carolinas and virginia. like we mentioned, it is strengthening. he had winds of 130, now winds of 140 miles per hour and there's still time for it to strengthen even more. it is actually forecasted to strengthen more before making land fall. it has gusts of 165, moving to the west/northwest at 17 miles per hour. on the latest forecast track, which hasn't changed much at all, forecasted winds of 155 miles per hour by 2:00 tomorrow, and then expected to make landfall as a category three by the time we get into the early afternoon on friday, and th

let's get to jennifer gray live in gulf port, mississippi, with more. what do you see there, generjen? >> what people are worried about here most is the storm surge. very low lying areas along the mississippi and alabama coast, a lot of this area along the coast is going to be under water. we are at gulf ports marina where the boats are ordered to get out of water by 2:00 p.m. storm surge 2 to 4 feet a lot of those boats will be banging together. that's why they wanted those boats out of the water. the schools are closed for today here. also the hurricane flags are flying along the beaches. so, a lot of people are just staying away from the coast, which is good news. a lot will depend on exactly where it makes landfall. if we end up in the eastern quadrant of the storm, we are going to get a lot of that storm surge as well as 4 to 8 inches of rain expected here on top of that, which is expected to pick up a little bit later this afternoon and then continue throughout the evening hours. of course, if we are in that western quadrant, it's not going to be

jennifer gray is live in gulfport, mississippi with more. what's the latest, jennifer? >> reporter: people are getting their boats out of the water and moving inland. the biggest concern will be the storm surge. we could get three to five feet of storm surge, it's a very low-lying area so any water is going to go straight inland so at this marina behind me, everyone has been asked to get their boats out of the water. still several boats here but we've seen people show up to get that secure so not much time left. the rain is still about 75 miles offshore. the storm still about 200 miles offshore. conditions will get worse into the afternoon hours and then especially this evening. we could get four to eight inches of rain. this is right where the storm is expected to make landfall somewhere around here. schools are closed for the day. the hurricane flags are out along the beaches so people are trying to secure their belongings in the last hour theft before the storm hits. john? >> jennifer gray on the gulf coast where you've been watching the storm all morning. >>> the pr

first, let's go straight to cnn meteorologist jennifer gray. she's in the cnn hurricane center right now. jennifer, there's a new forecast for florence that's just been released. update our viewers. >> wolf, the storm has put on the brakes. it's only moving about five miles per hour, and this is the fear. this is the storm that is going to basically sit over the carolinas for the next 24 to 36 hours, just shredding the coast, bringing relentless rain and a lot of wind and storm surge and flooding for days. we're getting gusts around cape lookout and north carolina with 100-mile-per-hour winds and gusts of 120. this storm is not going anywhere fast. only moving at 5 miles per hour. the track has actually slowed a little bit. not making a landfall until tomorrow afternoon, and if the storm decides to just sit offshore a little bit, we could be looking at even a longer period of time before we get an actual landfall. the storm surge and the rain is going tonight scariest part of the storm. it's basically sitting here out in the atlantic in very war

let's go straight to meteorologist jennifer gray. she is in the cnn weather center. the latest advisory just in. what have we learned, jennifer, from this latest report? >> jim, the latest advisory came out a few moments ago. the winds are stronger, the storm is more powerful. and it could strengthen even more within the next 24 hours. this storm is a beast, packing winds of 140 miles per hour, gusts of 165. it's moving to the west-northwest at 17 miles per hour. this storm is a category 4. could strengthen a little bit more, like i said, with winds 155 miles per hour by tomorrow. and then making landfall as a possible category 4 on early friday. now the last advisory, this had it making land fall as a category 3. could make landfall as a category 4. this is a major storm, and no matter where you are along the carolina coast, you need to pay very, very close attention. this is going to slow way down as it moves inland. this is going to dump a lot of rain. it could dump 20 to 30 inches of rain across interior sections of north carolina, south carolina, needs to be on t

let's go to meteorologist jennifer gray in the cnn severe weather center. nnifer, what are we expecting from the update coming out soon from the national hurricane center? >> well, i think we'll see very little changes. the track hasn't changed much, and i don't think it's going to increase in intensity that much. i wouldn't be surprised if the wind speed increased just a little bit. but i don't think it's going to increase all that much. the winds are very, very strong. 130-mile-an-hour winds with gusts 160. this is a powerful category 4 storm, with the latest advisory, it did speed up just a little bit going from 16 miles per hour to 17. it is expected to stay a category 4, but you see increasing those winds to 150 by tomorrow morning. that's why i wouldn't be surprised if it increased a little bit with this next advisory. and then making landfall either sometime thursday evening into friday morning and then slowing way down, jake. >> what's the best case and what's the worst-case scenario for those who are bracing for this hurricane? >> well, i think the

the big story is the surge and our jennifer gray is right here where the surge will be highest, 3 to 5 feet. you need to get out if you're below that level. >> thank you very much. >>> so as chad just said, gordon is expected to make landfall tonight as a category 1 hurricane. how is the gulf coast preparing? let's get to cnn's jennifer gray, she is life in gulf port, mississippi, with more where the storm surge -- i know you're keeping an eye on it. what are you seeing, jennifer? >> reporter: yeah, alisyn. the storm surge is the biggest concern for people here in gulf port and all along the mississippi/alabama coasts. we are here at the gulf port marina where all of the boats have been asked to get out of the water by 2:00 p.m. this morning. in fact, just in the past 30 seconds or so we saw some people walking by. everyone here trying to get their boats out while they can. if they don't, of course, there will be a penalty for them. so 2 to 4 feet storm surge, 3 to 5. that's enough for these boats to go over the dock and start banging together. that's why they want the boats out of t

jennifer gray has the weather forecast from the weather center. down or what do they say? >> unfortunately, jake, it is slowing down even more. it's pretty much just sitting, still. it has been downgraded to a tropical storm, but as we've been saying, the winds aren't what matters. the catastrophic floods will still continue, the storm surge will still continue regardless of the category. we still have that onshore flow and we've been getting it for the last 24 to 36 hours, and we're still getting it of the wilmingt wilmington, myrtle beach, everybody still getting this rain. 3 miles per hour. you can walk faster than this storm is moving. new bern still getting a down pour there. all across the outer banks still getting hit very hard. we still have gusty wind and that river flooding will be a problem all the way into the middle part of next week where a lot of these rivers across portions of north carolina are going to be at record levels. so we'll be talking about this through the middle part of the week, at least. >> jennifer gray in the cnn s

let's go to cnn meteorologist jennifer gray in the severe weather center. experts are saying don't get distracted by the fact that this storm has been downgraded to a category 2 status because they say what matters more is the size and the slowness along with the potential impact of florence. >> that's exactly right. you can't focus on the number because with this storm the most dangerous part of the storm is not the wind anyway. it's going to be the storm surge and the flooding which by the way 75% of the deaths in hurricanes come from the storm surge and the flooding. only about 8% come from wind, so it is unique in a sense in that this storm is incredibly big. it's double in size, and the fact that it's going to sit over these coastal areas for 24 to 36 hours, that is what makes this storm so unique. it's the duration of it. when you have 100-mile-per-hour winds that's going to sit on top of this area. that's where structures will start to fail because of the duration of those winds. the storm has already slowed. we're down to 5 miles per hour, so it's a

jennifer gray, thanks very much. joining me on the phone is kate woods, an aerial reconnaissance officer heading for the storm right now. i know you haven't reached the storm yet. can you explain what your team has been seeing so far this week on your flights. [ inaudible ] >> to be honest, this is our crew's first flight. we're going to start our descent in about 20 minutes. so it will be our first discovery. it's been a pretty strong storm, as the day's progressed, the latest data was 554 millibars, i believe. >> explain the importance of these flights, the data that you and your crews gather on these flights. because it really can save live lives. we lost lieutenant colonel kate woods. we appreciate her efforts and the efforts of her crew. joining me now is woody white, the board chairman of the new hannover county commissioners in north carolina, it's a county that includes wilmington. woody, there's a mandatory evacuation currently in place in parts of your county ahead of the storm. what are your top priorities

let's go to jennifer gray to get a sense of where the storm is.t what you are seeing on the radar and what we should expect over the coming hours. it seems calm right now here in wilmingt wilmington. >> you are in a lull. the eye is well to the southwest and pushing into portions of south carolina or the center of the storm. not an eye anymore. around wilmington, you are getting a band of rain etting is up where depending on where you are in you may be in a dry spell. otherwise you get a downpour. we get incredible totals. this is a hurricane with gusts of 100 moving to the west at six. this storm is going to be in across southeastern sections. moving off by the end of the weekend. we will be talking about this and winds are still very strong. about 50 miles per hour gusts and we are seeing those winds still peak out very strong. we are seeing impressive totals. we are getting the rain totals reach and we are in this for another day, day at least. here are the wind gusts. the winds continue with it sitting over land. that will continue when we get

i want to bring in our meteorologist, jennifer gray. ifer, as you look over the forecast and the models for how this storm will play out, what stands out to you? >> what stands out to me is pretty much the consistency. the national hurricane center has done an incredible job with forecasting this storm. with the track it is going to take, the slowdown, and it's been very consistent that this storm is going to go at a snail's pace. we will be able to walk faster than this storm is going to go once it intersects the u.s. and starts to make the dive to the south. so there should be no surprises. people that are evacuating, you are in the right areas to get out of there. get out of the way of this storm because it is a big one. it is powerful and it is large in size. 120-miles-per-hour winds, a category 3. that's a major wind. 150-miles-per-hour gusts. it could strengthen a little bit before making landfall, but we are expecting it to make landfall on friday as a category 3 with winds of 120 miles per hour. it is going to slow way down like

. >> jennifer gray, thank you so much. >>> look at the winds carrying off roofs and blowing out windows in hong kong. the highest typhoon warning signal is now in effect there. the hong kong observatory predicts the storm is going to hit right to left. >>> and the highest evacuation has occurred in mainland china. >> the pictures are just -- you can't take your eyes off of them. before hit iting china, this ha ripped through the philippines. and now 40 people have died soer fa. >>> and president trump is planning new tariffs on chinese goods. we'll tell you how that will affect your holiday shopping this year. >>> also, a man died after an official shark bite in cape cod. we'll tell you what happened. "have you lost weight?" of course i have- ever since i started renting from national. because national lets me lose the wait at the counter... ...and choose any car in the aisle. and i don't wait when i return, thanks to drop & go. at national, i can lose the wait...and keep it off. looking good, patrick. i know. (vo) go national. go like a pro. directly to investors. and now we have zero

let's go to the cnn severe weather center and meteorologist jennifer gray. looks awful, jennifer. you just saw miguel marques's report. give us an update of the latest forecast we are getting. >> it does and he's in one of the rain bands, not closest to the center where the stronger winds are. if you can believe it, people are experiencing stronger winds than he had. there are gusts of 85 miles per hour, it is only moving at three miles per hour at the 5:00 adviceor advisory. it slowed down even more, which is awful news for the people along the north carolina coast which is being battered by the flooding and the wind and the rain. this is going to continue this same trend of this on-shore flow, meaning all of the wind, the storm surge, the water pushing inland. that will continue, that flooding. luckily new bern has gotten out of the rain ban they've been in all day. if you were in certain parts of the city you are actually experiencing a little bit of relief but it is not over yet. you will continue to get the rain for the next possible 12 hours. some area

. >>> want to bring in our meteorologist, jennifer gray, with the latest. er, florence's rain inundating the region. >> reporter: to did. you know, the part that's hard to wrap your mind around now is that the storm is gone. most of the rain is going. you see the sunshine out. yet the rivers are still rising. some of them will rise throughout the week even more. even though the rain has stopped, the flooding danger is very real. look at the rainfall totals. we saw two to three feet of rain across south carolina, north carolina, and so now all this water is trying to make its way back to the ocean. trying to get to the rivers and go back into the ocean. what's happening is it's filling the rivers even more, causing them to overfill their banks. that's why we've seen so much flooding even days after the storm has passed. 2 rivers are at major flat -- 20 rivers are at major flood stage, 20 at moderate. you see the rain, here's the radar, much of it is leaving south carolina, north carolina. just a couple of spotty showers. the remnants of florence are well to n

. >> jennifer gray, fantastic context.it's a two and not a four and i'm okay, look at demonstration like that. if you can get out, get out. an aging nuclear power planned could be breached by the storm. it's about 15 miles outside of wilmington. how big are the concerns here? >> reporter: it is a concern, john. this is the power plant you are talking b. this is the brunswick nuclear power plant just behind me. you see the long bru structure and the two coming out are the reactor buildings. this was built in the 1970s and has the same design as the fukushima power plant in japan that suffered damage after the 2011 tsunami and earthquake there. officials are telling us fukushima was right along the shoreline and this is four miles inland and 20 feet above mean sea level. it's about two to three miles from the cape fear river. this is an intake canal and they erected barriers and they are confident they can with stand this storm that is the pengt hurricane since the 1970s. that's the word from officials. what i want to do is

cnn's jennifer gray joins us. what have you learned, jennifer? >> anderson, the latest advisory just came out about five minutes ago and we have learned it has weakened a little bit, 115-mile-per-hour winds. still a major storm, though. still a category 3, with gusts of 150 miles per hour, moving to the northwest at 15. so the forward speed is still the same. but you can see the eye starting to collapse a little bit. it could be going through an eye wall replacement, meaning these storms just exhale and inhale. they can't maintain that strong intensity for very long. it is expected to still make landfall as a category 3. that hasn't changed. that's what we've been talking about the last couple of days, and that extreme slowdown is still expected, as well. we'll be able to walk faster than this storm is going, by the time it gets close to land. now, it could go on land and then meander to the south. it could stay offshore a little bit, but either way, we are going to get inundated with rain. this is going to be a long-term event. and we are going

let's get the new forecast just out from our meteorologist, jennifer gray. she is at the cnn weather center. jennifer, this advisory just in. update our viewers on the very latest. >> the advisory just came out about ten minutes ago, wolf. and still a major category 3 storm. this storm is very, very powerful, packing winds of 120 miles per hour, with gusts of 150, moving to the northwest at 16 miles per hour. still moving very quickly, but is expected to slow. in fact, come to a screeching halt by the time it makes it to the coast. anywhere between northeastern south carolina and the central coast of north carolina, as a category 3 major storm. and this storm is going to slow so much, you will be able to walk faster than this storm is moving. that means a lot of rain is going to dump not only across interior sections of north carolina, but all through south carolina as it still lingers on saturday, and then potentially still hanging around by sunday across eastern portions of georgia, even moving into tennessee. so the storm is not going anywhere quickly. it'

let's go do jennifer gray. you've been studying the data coming in. what's your take on florence now? how is it likely to play out? >> it's alarming because the latest advisory came out about ten minutes ago. it shows that florence is sdren strengthening. we're up to 105 miles an hour. it shows this is sitting out in warm water. it's sitting over the gulf stream and this still has the ability to strengthen like it's doing now which is awful news considering it's basically stalled out moving at about 5 miles an hour. the last couple of frames look like it's getting better organized and it's slowing to a screeching halt. with it under these conditions, these circumstance, it's going to bring incredible amounts of rain. the storm surge will come in just as we have been talking about and it's going to inundate these communities. it's going to sit here for 24 to 36 hours with that track making landfall possibly not until tomorrow afternoon. could be later if this sits offshore longer and it's going to shred that coastline all across the north carolina coas

jennifer gray joins us now with the latest. jennifer, what does this storm look like? because some people come up to me already and said, you know, what's going on with this? we saw some bands of rain and wind here in wilmington, and then now we've taken off our raincoats because it's not raining, it's not that windy. what are you seeing? >> that's normal with hurricanes. you have the rain bands come, and then you won't have anything for a while, and then the next one will come. and once the center of the storm gets closer and closer to you, then it will be a little more sustained. but i assure you, you will get another round before it's said and done and a lot more of it, because the storm is going to sit and basically camp out for the next 24 to 36 hours. the latest advisory at 8:00, winds of 100 miles per hour, still a category 2, gusts of 120. we have a gust near 100 miles per hour near cape lookout. so we're already getting very, very strong winds, strong gusts, around it's only moving at 5 miles per hour. and i just want to tack onto what brian todd was saying ab

jennifer gray is tracking the storm for us. bring us up to date. >> the storm is already reaching the shore. the outer bands starting to pound the coastline. it will be downhill and last for 24 to 36 hours. this storm is big. it has grown in size. many more people will be impacted even though we were talking about yesterday. this storm kept the strength for so long, it has so much momentum with it. it is going to bring all that was onshore. that's why we are going to get the life-threatening storage surges and the dangerous flooding. we have the watch in effect. tornados will be a problem as well. as the outer bands come onshore, it will bring the waves and the wind and that surge that we have been talking about. the center of the storm about 200 miles offshore. it is moving at a terrific base pace, but it will sit over the carolina coast for 36 hours at least. winds gust to 125. just as you say it weakened, keep in mind most storms move in quickly. this storm will not. while structures may be able to with hand 100 mile per hou

. >> let's bring in our meteorologist jennifer gray. what can we expect in the days ahead?uch worse can it get? >> well, wolf, the scary part is that a lot of times when you have this river flooding, the water is slow to recede. so to hear that the water is over major interstates, it could be several, several days before that water drains low enough for traffic to go. we did get two to three feet of water across the carolinas, so it is no surprise at all that we're dealing with massive flooding. it is just crazy to think that flooding occurs days after the storm has passed, and that's because this is river flooding. there are 20 rivers in major flood stage, 22 in moderate. when all of that water now tries to drain out, it is draining into these rivers and tributaries. it is overfilling their banks and that is what is causing all of this incredible flooding. so that will continue. some of these rivers aren't going to crest for several more days, and so the water is only going to get higher. here is the forecast radar. florence -- what is left of florence is on the move. in f

i want to go to meteorologist jennifer gray in the cnn weathercenter.een following florence's every move. talk about where this thing is now and what the next 24 hours are going to look like. >> it's less than 100 miles from show but once it comes to shore it's going to come to a screeching halt so we're not expecting landfall to arrive tomorrow evening, it could be late overnight hours and to the morning. then it will me yander to the south so the next 24 hours the areas of north carolina already getting battered by these outer bands, the winds, waves, surge it will be happening. most of these storms come in and go. this is going to sit here for 24 to 36 hours once it makes landfall. we're not talking about from now so we'll talk about this storm through the weekend as it's sitting here dumping rain. the storage surge and flooding will be the two main concerns with this storm. we're talking about taking a beat of 120 mile per hour winds for 24 hours, a lot of structures will fail but the inundation of waters will be devastating with this storm. all 6 t

folks who are leaving the coastline and going inland, you really need to go quite a bit inland, as jennifer grayreporting out this last hour. you know, even inland carolinas could see up to 20 inches of floodwater. so we are thinking about all the ems crews, the rescue crews, you know, fire, as they prepare for what is to come here with hurricane florence. stay put. i'm brooke baldwin. let's go to washington. "the lead" with jake tapper starts now. ♪ >>> president trump says we're totally prepared for the hurricane. where have we heard that before. "the lead" starts right now. >>> breaking news, president trump addressing this monster storm. what could be one of the most powerful hurricanes to ever hit the east coast, as he then brags at the response in puerto rico to hurricane maria was a, quote, unsung success. that about a disaster with a death toll of nearly 3,000. >>> also today, president trump playing uniter and divider to mark the attacks of 9/11 while also launching a

let's get over to jennifer gray in the cnn weather center now. jennifer, we've seen a lot of change just in the last few minutes. what are you looking at with this storm right now? >> reporter: the storm is just not going anywhere and that's the problem. that's what we've been talking about the last couple of days is it's not the winds, it's the duration of the storm. it's the fact that we are going to get these conditions for 24 to 36 hours. these areas along the coast in north carolina and even well inland are going through their second night of these conditions. it's actually hard to believe. moving to the west at 3 miles per hour, it's going at a snail's pace and all of that wind and rain and storm surge and flooding is just continuing to push west. it's continuing to push inland and so that's what's going to back up those rivers even more and continue with that flooding. the torrential rains are slowly moving to the south. these brighter bands, that has the heavier rain, several inches an hour and as that slowly starts to slip to the south, i