Evacuations were underway in Florida on Thursday night as a record-shattering storm rapidly intensified into a Category 2 hurricane. Hurricane Isaias has been expected to continue gaining strength as it travels en route to make landfall near the northern Gulf Coast by this upcoming weekend. Residents of northern Florida were treated to an ominous sunset on Thursday as the storm grew near. A state of emergency has been declared in parts of Florida, Alabama, and Georgia with mandatory evacuation orders in some areas. 'What does mandatory evacuation mean? No one is coming to your door to force you out. That is not how this works,' Bobby Wagner, Mayor of Destin, Florida wrote in a social media post. 'If you stay and something goes wrong, you are on your own until it's over. No police, no fire, no EMS,' he wrote. Florida airports are scheduled to close ahead of the storm, along with Amtrak services disrupted in parts of Louisiana and Alabama. Locations along the coast could experience up to seven feet of storm surge, 15 inches of rain and brief tornadoes without warning. The storm has been forecast to bring flooding, power outages and knock down trees.

'Damaging hurricane force winds are expected over portions of Florida Panhandle, southern Alabama, and southern Mississippi,' the National Hurricane Center (NHC) wrote. 'Residents in these areas should prepare for the possibility of long-duration power outages.' According to the NHC, Hurricane Isaias had sustained winds up to 105 mph. Reports have stated the storm may briefly become a major hurricane early Friday before weakening later in the night. A major hurricane refers to a category 3 or stronger storm with sustained winds of at least 111 mph. Captain Mark McCoy, an Air Force Reserve Weather officer told CNN, that his team experienced 'a lot of dry air' while flying through the storm.

'It was slowly gaining strength as we were in there,' he told the outlet. Their mission lasted over nine hours as they traveled through the eye of the storm. Although Hurricane Isaias could potentially weaken to a category 1 or 2 later Friday night, its wind field has still been expected to continue expanding. It will spread dangerous impacts beyond the center of the storm as it passes near a warm eddy, a rotating pocket of warm ocean water below the surface. Deep pockets of heat in the ocean provide fuel for hurricanes to expand. 'Considerable flash and urban flooding, along with significant river flooding, will be possible,' the NHC wrote.

Ahead of the storm, residents prepared days in advance stocking up on grocery essentials and fuel tanks during the state of emergency. Energy companies such as Chevron and Shell have shut down production at some offshore facilities while also evacuating workers. Federal agencies have prepared to help anyone affected by Hurricane Isaias throughout the weekend. 'As Hurricane Isaias approaches the Gulf Coast, the Department of Homeland Security, and FEMA are closely monitoring the storm and coordinating with state, local, and federal partners to ensure we are ready to support state response efforts,' Markwayne Mullin, Department of Homeland Security Secretary, wrote in a social media post. 'Take this storm seriously, look out for your neighbors, and stay safe,' Mullin wrote.