Hurricane Bertha and its 100 mph winds swirled offshore Thursday on a path toward the Carolinas, kicking up surf and turning bustling beaches into ghost towns. North Carolina's governor declared a state of emergency.

Evacuation orders were lifted in Florida early Thursday. But down the lone highway along North Carolina's Outer Banks between Nags Head and Cape Hatteras, restaurants and stores were closed. Rental cottages were empty and campgrounds deserted.Computer models predict Bertha will probably make landfall in North Carolina, perhaps by midnight, with storm-force winds being felt later Thursday. There's a small chance it could then continue up the coast but more likely would be offshore as it moves northward, forecasters said.

"Bertha is a very large hurricane that will impact a tremendous area wherever it makes landfall," Gov. Jim Hunt said in issuing the proclamation, which lets the Emergency Management Division to use other North Carolina agencies to help deal with the hurricane.

At an amusement park, a plaster gorilla stood watch over the empty playground and boarded-up storefronts, where merchants left signs like "Kiss Me Bertha" or "Go Away Bertha" to express their feelings.

Kevin and Terry Kumanga of Woodbridge, Va., loaded belongings into their station wagon at Nags Head for the trip home.

"We're two for two. We've been to North Carolina twice," Kumanga said. "Felix ran us out last year, and now Bertha this year."

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More evacuations were expected Thursday in other counties along North Carolina's southern coast and northern sections of South Carolina.

"It's in a frenzy," said Chris Fink, night auditor at Shell Island Resort Hotel at Wrightsville Beach, N.C. "Everyone's checking out."

Ocean swells Thursday reached 15 feet in the waters off Wilmington, and coastal flooding could begin later Thursday. Storm tides of up to 10 feet are expected if Bertha reaches land during high tide Friday morning, and rainfall totals in the hurricane's path could reach 8 inches, according to the National Weather Service.

"There is going to be a landfall," said Ray Sturza, a spokesman for Dare County, where an evacuation was ordered Wednesday for Hatteras Island and nearby Ocracoke Island in Hyde County. "And we're going to have a mess here tomorrow."

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