The National Hurricane Center is still saying it is unclear what impact Hurricane Matthew will have on the East Coast of the United States.

That is because the track predicts it will sweep parallel up to the coast. “For example, only a small deviation of the track to the left of the NHC forecast could bring the core of a major hurricane onshore, while a small deviation to the right could keep all of the hurricane-force winds offshore,” a discussion posted on the center’s website this morning said. “It will likely be another day or so for the potential impacts of Matthew in the United States to clarify.”

Area officials, however, are telling people to prepare. Gov. Nathan Deal yesterday declared a state of emergency in coastal counties, including Bryan, Liberty and Long.

Liberty County officials called a meeting for 10 this morning to discuss possible actions. Coastalcourier.com is hoping to have links to a stream of the meeting.