Hurricane Irma, the most powerful Atlantic storm in a decade, continued to pound the north coast of Cuba this morning and is projected to sweep toward the U.S. mainland soon.

The hurricane’s strong winds and rain are already being felt along the southern tip of Florida. Though is has dropped down to a Category 3 hurricane, experts say Irma will restrengthen as it hits the western coast of Florida and makes its way up.

Meanwhile, Bainbridge continues to see an influx of traffic as evacuees leave the Sunshine state for safer ground up north. Vehicles were lined up all the way from the light at the intersection of Highway 27 and Douglas Drive to a quarter mile down the road earlier this morning.

Bainbridge is in position to get hit by tropical storm force winds and up to 6 inches of rain as Irma’s presence passes through the Southwest Georgia region. Residents should expect bad weather to begin Sunday evening and on into Monday.

Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal declared a state of emergency in 94 counties, including Decatur County.