Donald Trump has cancelled a visit to Poland so he can oversee the response to Hurricane Dorian which is barrelling towards US mainland.
The storm is forecast to make landfall on the Atlantic coast as a dangerous Category 4 storm on Monday, with Florida's governor expanded a state of emergency.
Mr Trump said Vice President Mike Pence would make the trip to Poland in his place so that he could remain in the US to make sure federal resources were properly directed.
"It's something very important for me to be here. The storm looks like it could be a very, very big one indeed," the president said.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who had already declared a state of emergency for 26 counties on the state's east coast, extended it on Thursday to the whole of Florida.
"Floridians need to take this storm seriously. Hurricane #Dorian is moving slowly & gaining strength," DeSantis wrote on Twitter. "Now is the time to get prepared & have a plan. Remember, we can rebuild a home but we can’t rebuild your life. The safety of all Floridians is my top priority."
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp declared a state of emergency in 12 counties to assist with storm readiness, response and recovery.
Dorian, expected to strengthen in the Atlantic with violent winds topping 130 miles per hour, is aiming at central Florida, including Florida's famed Space Coast.
It could churn across dozens of launchpads owned by NASA, the US Air Force and companies such as Elon Musk's SpaceX and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin.
Such winds would make Dorian a Category 4 storm, the second-strongest on the Saffir-Simpson scale for measuring hurricane intensity.
