Hurricane Matthew to have devastating impact on Haiti

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Hurricane Matthew will continue to have a devastating impact on Haiti, even after landfall.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center says the Category 4 storm made landfall around 7 a.m. EDT Tuesday near Les Anglais, Haiti. Matthew's maximum sustained winds are near 145 mph (230 kph).

Severe Weather Team 2 Meteorologist Karen Minton says 20 to 40 inches of rain is possible.

By 12 p.m. it was moving out of the area and continuing its path towards the U.S. coast. Karen says the impact is far from over in Haiti, where there will continue to be heavy rainfall that is likely to cause flash floods and mudslides, along with strong winds and storm surges.

The hurricane is heading to eastern Cuba, but the island's mountains aren't expected to have much effect on the storm.

Tropical storm or hurricane watches may be issued for parts of southeastern Florida later Tuesday. A high-pressure ridge is nudging Matthew toward Florida and blocking its path due north from the Bahamas.

According to Severe Weather Team 2 Meteorologist Brian Monahan, the impact of Hurricane Matthew in north Georgia is expected to be limited to breezy weather later this week.

Residents along Georgia's coast are keeping an eye on the weather as Hurricane Matthew moves northward toward the United States.

Tybee Island Mayor Jason Buelterman said emergency management officials are telling local leaders the storm's projected path has shifted over the last 24 hours and could still move again.

But he says the message is clear that coastal Georgia needs to keep a close watch on the storm as it passes Haiti and heads north for the southeastern U.S. coast.

Officials are having regular conference calls about the hurricane, and Georgia's state emergency management agency says workers at its operations center are preparing for the storm.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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