SOUTHEAST U.S. – As the nation eyes Hurricane Matthew's swirl around the Caribbean, authorities are urging U.S. citizens and businesses to prepare for the oncoming storm with projections for its arrival later this week. 

"While the strength of Matthew will fluctuate as it approaches the U.S. coast late this week, it will remain a powerful and dangerous hurricane with threats from storm surge flooding and high winds," stated Hurricane Expert Dan Kottlowski, according to AccuWeather. 

Experts have issued evacuations for areas of Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, and North Carolina, as of Wednesday. While there is no guarantee that the hurricane will make U.S. landfall, it is still expected to get very near to the Atlantic coast.

The affected areas will experience strong winds and heavy rains, with subsequent flooding from downpours and coastal waters. The hurricane was creating winds of 120 mph as of Wednesday as it moved towards the Bahamas, and is 70 miles long, according to CNN. 

"Matthew will track very close to the east coast of Florida from late Thursday through Friday," Kottlowski said. "Even if the eye of Hurricane Matthew remains just offshore, gusts to hurricane force can occur along the immediate Atlantic coast along with storm surge flooding.”

Authorities are re-directing interstates to one-way travel as people leave the states. Once the storm gets closer and weather effects increase, roads are expected to close. Airline delays are also expected, with some smaller airports potentially closing for an extended period of time.

CNN stated that Hurricane Matthew was 400 miles from West Palm Beach, FL, as of 2:30 pm (PST) on Wednesday. All four states have declared varying levels of states of emergencies throughout their states, with severe weather expected throughout the weekend before the storm is expected to move back out to sea next week.

As authorities keep a close eye on Hurricane Matthew and its forthcoming impact on U.S. transportation and land, AndNowUKnow will continue to have the latest.