Hurricane Florence nears the Carolinas

Hurricane Florence is now a Category 2 storm, as it continues toward the Carolina coast, bringing with it life-threatening storm surge and rainfall.

But don't be fooled by the fact that Florence has weakened slightly to a Category 2 hurricane; categories only denote the speed of sustained winds. What makes this hurricane extremely dangerous are the deadly storm surges, mammoth coastal flooding and historic rainfall expected far inland.

"I don't care if this goes down to a Category 1," CNN meteorologist Chad Myers said. "We're still going to have a Category 4 storm surge."

Even worse: Florence is expected to hover over the Carolinas, whipping hurricane-force winds and dumping relentless rain at least through Saturday.

As of 5 a.m. ET, Florence's outer rain bands were already approaching the coast. The surf is starting to really pick up. The storm is about 205 miles ESE of Wilmington, NC, and 250 miles ESE of Myrtle Beach, SC, with maximum sustained winds of 110mph.

By the time it leaves, it's expected to have unloaded 10 trillion gallons of rainfall in North Carolina, weather.us meteorologist Ryan Maue said.

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