Cape May County emergency officials Thursday afternoon, Aug. 25, ordered the evacuation of the county in advance of Hurricane Irene, which officials fear could hit the county over the weekend.

Frank McCall, the county emergency management coordinator, said residents and visitors should leave the barrier islands starting today.

McCall made clear that he wants to get a head start on the evacuation and to discourage potential visitors from starting to the shore for the last August weekend.

The order becomes mandatory for the county as of 8 a.m. Friday, Aug. 26.

Forecasts call for high winds and heavy rain, and extremely rough surf. According to McCall, a combination of a new moon, which would have caused high tides regardless, heavy rains and a potential storm surge could bring flooding that could rival the worst Cape May County has seen.

The eye of the storm could reach Cape May County about noon on Sunday. McCall said there are about 750,000 to 850,000 people in the county, and that it is one of the most difficult areas in the country to evacuate.

Winds could be as strong as 70 miles per hour, McCall said, and the county expects extensive power outages during the worst of the storm.

Combined with the widespread potential flooding, which McCall suggested could affect some 80 percent of county residents, landfall for Irene anywhere within 100 miles of the county “is going to make life very difficult in Cape May County.”

At a press briefing in the Office of Emergency Management, in the basement of the county library on Mechanic Street, McCall said he hoped for full cooperation from residents and visitors. He said some residents might say that they have sat out hurricanes before. McCall said the last time the county was evacuated was for Hurricane Gloria in 1985, but the last direct hit was in 1882.

He said some people may say they have been there, done that.

"No one alive has seen a direct hit from a hurricane in Cape May County,” he said. “There is no one that’s been there or done that.”

He was not above scaring people, although he said he was an optimist about people’s cooperation. When asked if there would be repercussions for those who did not leave, he suggested they write their name, Social Security number, next of kin and contact information on a 3-by-5 card and place it in their left shoe, a tied shoe rather than a flip-flop, so that responders after the storm would know whom to contact.

The press briefing went out live over local radio, and was covered by regional print and television media. McCall said he and Freeholder Ralph Sheets made the decision to call the evacuation, but that it was with the consensus of each of the county’s 16 municipalities.

There are no shelters set up in the county for this storm, he said.

According to McCall, the county has told residents for years to develop an emergency plan, including a place to stay, with friends, relatives, or at a hotel.

There are shelters planned in Atlantic County at St. Augustine’s Prep, at Cumberland County Community College and at Rowan University in Gloucester County.

He suggested evacuees avoid seeking shelter near the Delaware Bay and avoid heading north, where the Parkway will take them along the coast and a series of barrier islands that are also facing the storm.

The County Bridge Commission has lifted tolls on all bridges starting 8 a.m. Friday, and McCall said he has asked the Gov. Chris Christie to ask the Turnpike Authority to also lift tolls for those leaving the county on Friday.

On Thursday, Christie declared a state of emergency in New Jersey. He urged people to leave the Jersey Shore by midday Friday.

According to reports, including the Associated Press, the governor said New Jersey could face a serious, significant event and asked prospective visitors not to go to the shore this weekend, and for renters to leave on Thursday or Friday rather than on Saturday, when rental properties usually change over.

The declaration allows the state to deploy the National Guard and other resources to local communities.

McCall urged pet owners to bring their animals, including those heading to shelters. He said it is important in light of the number of people who remained during Hurricane Katrina when it struck Louisiana.

Those who are concerned about their pets but can’t take them along can drop them off at the Cape May County Airport on Breakwater Road in Lower Township, where arrangements for their care can be made.

The forecast for the hurricane, which has done major damage to Bermuda, has changed several times, in some cases for the better for Cape May County, but more recently for the worse. McCall said one potential mitigating factor could be a cold front out of Canada that may slow the storm or reduce its power. The same thing could happen when the storm reaches cooler water north of the Carolinas.

The National Weather Service was calling for showers on Saturday, which could include scattered thunderstorms with heavy rain possible in the afternoon. By Saturday evening, there could be tropical storm conditions locally, according to the weather service, with hurricane conditions expected on Sunday, when the chance of rain is said to be near 100 percent.

Conditions are expected to clear by Monday, when a sunny, breezy day is expected, but local officials have asked people not to return to the county until they give the OK.

Throughout the county, grocery stores and gas stations were packed with people concerned about the storm, and most service stations had lines well out into the street.

As of Thursday, Irene was a category 3 hurricane, and reports say it could cause damage in the billions.