Hurricane Earl continues its course towards the Maritimes. The Category 4 system is currently about 660 kilometres south of Cape Hatteras, N.C., packing maximum sustained winds of 230 km/h. Environment Canada stated Thursday morning that Earl has a 20% probability of remaining a Category 4 Hurricane when it reaches the Maritimes this weekend. (Hurricane Juan in 2003 was a Category 2 Hurricane).  

North Carolina and Virginia have both declared a state of emergency in advance of the hurricane. A tropical storm warning has been issued for the coast of Long Island, N.Y. and a hurricane watch was issued for parts of Massachusetts. A hurricane warning was already in place for the North Carolina coast.

Earl is expected to touch down on the U.S. mainland around midnight Thursday near Cape Hatteras. It is expected to bring wind gusts of up to 160 km/h along with several feet of storm surge.

Earl's path shifts towards New Brunswick and is expected to make landfall in Canada early Saturday morning. A significant shift was seen Thursday morning in projections for Earl's path into Canada. As of 5 a.m. the U.S. National Hurricane Center revised its forecast, with models showing it would likely make landfall at Grand Manan Island, N.B., near the border with Maine.

Maritimers are urged to prepare for the arrival of Hurricane Earl with a forecast of high winds, heavy rains and possible storm surges.