President Trump said Wednesday that Florida “got lucky” with Hurricane Dorian, which is moving north toward the Carolinas without having made landfall yet.
“It took a right turn,” Mr. Trump told reporters at the White House during a hurricane briefing. “It looks like Florida is going to be in fantastic shape in comparison to what we thought.”
Mr. Trump said officials initially had predicted Florida would take a “direct hit” from the storm, which was Category 5 at the time.
Noting that the storm, now a less powerful Category 2, is heading toward the Carolinas, the president added, “Hopefully we are going to be lucky. We don’t know where the hurricane is turning.”
Dorian devastated parts of the Bahamas before turning north. The president said the U.S. will provide aid at the request of the Bahamian government.
Acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan said the hurricane remains “very powerful.”
“We’ve been very well prepared,” Mr. McAleenan said of pre-deployed assets. “We are on our toes looking forward to responding effectively.”
Peter Gaynor, acting administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said FEMA “will follow Dorian up the coast until it is not a threat to the U.S.”
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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