More than 1.5 million residents living in low-lying areas of the states have been urged to evacuate as the storm, which has now been downgraded to a Category 3, is expected to make land within hours.

Hurricane Matthew has already claimed the lives of at least 339 people in Haiti and four in the Dominican Republic on its way north.

Florida Governor Rick Scott has urged residents to "evacuate, evacuate, evacuate" adding: "This storm will kill you."

More than 200,000 people are currently without power in Florida and experts believe storm surges could reach up to 11ft in some areas.

Flooding is expected to be severe in coastal areas of Florida, Georgia and South Carolina, while North Carolina could also be affected as the storm moves north in days ahead.

More than 3,000 flights were cancelled on Thursday and today and both Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood International Airport and Orlando airport have shut.

A number of Orlando theme parks have also closed, including Walt Disney World and Universal Studios.

Meanwhile, Amtrak trains between Miami and New York have been suspended.

Yesterday, Virgin Atlantic and British Airways cancelled Heathrow to Miami services due to the impending storm.

BA flights from Miami to Heathrow remained cancelled yesterday evening, while Virgin Atlantic has waived rebooking fees for two days for passengers travelling to and from Miami and Orlando.

A Virgin Atlantic spokesperson said: “Due to the forecast weather conditions from Hurricane Matthew, customers booked to travel to, from and through Miami and Orlando on 6 and 7 October 2016 who prefer to rebook may do so, without penalty."