Virginia Governor Declares State of Emergency

As weather forecasters issued a hurricane watch for the Virginia and Maryland coastlines on Wednesday, Virginia Gov. Robert McDonnell issued a state of emergency for the commonwealth.

A hurricane watch means that hurricane conditions of winds greaters than 73 miles per hour are possible in the next 48 hours. Officials continue to keep a close eye on Earl, which has been downgraded to a Category 3 storm, as it is headed towards the East Coast.

"The current forecast has Hurricane Earl passing east of Virginia later this week," said McDonnell. "However, a change in the storm's path could bring hazardous weather conditions to eastern Virginia.  This declaration is a precautionary move which will allow state agencies to be ready just in case resources are needed." 

In declaring a state of emergency, the governor authorizes state agencies to identify and position resources and manpower for quick response anywhere they are needed in Virginia.

While the Washington, D.C., metro area is not expected to be drastically affected - in fact, the Woodbridge forecast for the weekend is 80s and sunshine -  the storm could have the biggest impact in holiday weekend travelers from Northern Virginia.

AAA spokesman John Townsend II says the group is watching what the storm does.

"The impact of the hurricane on travel this weekend will depend on what the storm does in the next 48 hours," he said.

"It goes without saying, before heading out travelers need to keep a careful watch on the weather forecast and on weather conditions, both here and at their destinations."

AAA Mid-Atlantic says that 788,000 people from the DC area plan to travel more than 50 miles between Thursday, Sept. 2 and Monday, Sept. 6. The number of people predicted to travel is up 8.9 percent over last year.

Of those traveling, just 33,900 Washingtonians will catch a flight. Most Washington-area residents will drive to their end-of-summer destinations.

"Over 730,000 traveling Washingtonians will hop into their vehicles to head to their selected end of summer hot spot. That means nearly 93 percent of those traveling from the Washington area will be hitting the roads," Townsend says.

About one-third of those getting away say they plan to go to the beach. Ocean City, Bethany Beach, Dewey Beach, Rehoboth Beach and Virginia Beach are popular destinations for area residents.

All of those places may feel Earl's impact this weekend, just a few days after dealing with high winds and riptides from Hurricane Danielle.

In Ocean City, lifeguards rescued nearly 500 people from rip currents last weekend.

The resort is now gearing up for about a quarter million people for Labor Day.

Donna Abbott, spokeswoman for the Town of Ocean City, says "We're not pushing any panic buttons at this point."

"We're a coastal community, and we've been through these situations before," she told The Baltimore Sun.

If you are planning to travel this weekend, AAA Mid-Atlantic offers this advice:

• Know the forecast at home and your destination.
• Monitor the forecast on a regular basis. Pay attention to evacuation advisories.
• Pack emergency supplies: snacks, rain coats, extra clothing, flashlights, extra batteries, a radio and extra water.
• If flying, check your flight status before leaving for the airport and put necessities in your carry-on.

Editor's Note: Karen Goff is the editor for Reston Patch.