Hurricane Earl upgraded; winds at 140 mph

Vacationers in Buxton, N.C., in the Outer Banks, spend some final moments on the beach Wednesday as evacuations begin. Hurricane Earl is expected to brush the coastline early Friday morning. (Ricky Carioti)

W. Craig Fugate, administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, briefed President Obama on preparations. FEMA deployed teams to North Carolina and other East Coast states; shifted emergency supplies of water, food, tarps, blankets, generators and other essential items; and activated the National Response Coordination Center and regional centers in Boston, New York, Philadelphia and Atlanta.

The storm prompted the U.S. Postal Service to make earlier deliveries of Social Security benefits checks to coastal communities from North Carolina to New York.

Although computer models and satellites have significantly improved the ability to provide much earlier warnings of hurricanes and predict their course, slight changes in wind patterns play an important role.

"No one can precisely predict exactly where the eye is going to move," said Lixian Avila, a hurricane specialist at the hurricane center. "Basically, storms are like a piece of wood in a river. Where they go depends on the currents in the river. At this time, all the currents say it's going to approach but not hit the coast. But a small deviation will bring the piece of wood closer."

In Corolla, N.C., red flags warning swimmers to get out of the water went up early Wednesday morning, and a safety patrol warned people about riptides. But with ideal weather and a crowded beach, it was hard to tell that a hurricane may be on the way.

"We don't want any hurricane to move us out before we want to go," said Grace Butler, 84, of Columbia, Mo. Butler was not eager for a replay of 1995's Hurricane Felix, when she had to evacuate these same shores. "Took us about eight hours," she said.

By noon Wednesday, business at the Community Store, a grocery in the heart of Ocracoke Village, had slowed to a trickle.

"Most of the visitors have seemed to have left," said Susan Paul, who runs the store with her husband.

Jackie Gray, owner of the Tower Circle Motel on Hatteras Island, saw the last of her guests drive away by about 2 p.m. Wednesday. Sixteen of her 19 rooms had been rented for the coming days, and she found herself saying goodbye to roughly $6,000 in lost income.

"It's an act of God - you can't charge people for this. You have to refund their money," Gray said.

Gray spent much of the day dragging in planters and outdoor furniture. She changed the outgoing message on the motel's telephone to say, "We do not foresee anybody being able to check in Thursday, Friday and possibly Saturday," and then drove her Chevy Silverado to the gas station to fill it up.

"We've been through quite a few of these," she said with a sigh.

Staff researcher Madonna Lebling and staff writers Ed O'Keefe, Lyndsey Layton, Steven Ginsberg and Michael E. Ruane contributed to this report.