INTERVIEW — KEN BOONE — Weather Channel Meteorologist  — discussed how close the hurricane will get near the DC area.

• Virginia and North and South Carolina are under states of emergency after Hurricane Florence strengthened Sunday, and weather forecasters predicted it could become a major storm that batters the southeast U.S. later in the week

• Strengthening Hurricane Florence churns toward East Coast. (WTOP) – Though the threat of a direct hit on the D.C. area decreased over the weekend, a storm is more than a single point on a map. A strike anywhere along the East Coast will likely bring torrential rainfall to Virginia, Maryland, and D.C. from Friday into early next week. “The storm is expected to slow down as it makes landfall and to just sit over the region where it hits,” said Storm Team4 meteorologist Steve Prinzivalli.  “That could cause some very heavy rainfall, some gusty winds, and numerous power outages.” Heavy rain this weekend could only act to make things worse. A separate storm system — including the remains of Tropical Storm Gordon — brought up to three inches of rain to the region.