CHARLESTON, S.C. - A hurricane watch was posted Saturday for the Southeast coast as Ophelia strengthened into a hurricane once again, but forecasters were predicting a shift northward Sunday.

A hurricane watch was posted along a 300-mile stretch from the Georgia-South Carolina state line to North Carolina's Cape Lookout, meaning hurricane-force wind of at least 74 mph was possible by Sunday evening, the National Hurricane Center said.

"The forecast track is pointing towards North Carolina, but South Carolina is not out of the woods yet," said center hurricane specialist Jack Beven. The prediction of landfall has been made difficult by weak steering currents, Beven said.

North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley declared a state of emergency Saturday evening, activating the state's emergency response center in Raleigh, N.C., and authorizing the use as needed of the National Guard and all state agencies.

South Carolina state emergency officials said a decision would be made late Saturday whether any evacuations would be ordered. Charleston County opened shelters Saturday evening for voluntary evacuees from low-lying areas and barrier islands, but no residents had arrived.

"We don't think it's a done deal yet," said Joe Farmer, a spokesman for the South Carolina Emergency Management Division. "It's moving really slow so we have to hang with it. But there is some expectation it will move toward the coast."

At 11 p.m. EDT Saturday, Ophelia was stationary about 255 miles east-southeast of Charleston with maximum sustained winds of 80 mph. Hurricane force winds extended outward about 30 miles.

Emergency management directors along the North Carolina coast said they were prepared for Ophelia and warned residents not to be complacent.

"We've had computer models that are spread from landfall in South Carolina, or one of them even in Georgia, to missing Cape Hatteras (N.C.) to the east," Beven said. "Where it's going to go is uncertain. Most likely, it's going to move slow."

The crew of an Air Force hurricane hunter airplane flying through Ophelia measured top sustained wind of 80 mph. It could strengthen a bit before an expected landfall, which could be anywhere from Monday to Wednesday.

"Almost every (computer) model indicates a United States landfall," said Eric Blake, a meteorologist at the hurricane center in Miami said. "It's time to make those preparations."

Ophelia was already contributing to rough surf along the coast.

"There are large swells from Ophelia and residual swells from (Tropical Storm) Nate and from the northeast winds we've had over the past few days. You can imagine how confused the seas are," said meteorologist Steve Pfaff at the National Weather Service in Wilmington, N.C. He said a buoy at Frying Pan Shoals, 35 miles off Cape Fear, was reporting 12-foot waves.

Nate and another tropical storm, Maria, posed no threat to land as they weakened over the cooler water of the north Atlantic.

If Ophelia makes landfall in South Carolina it would the third hurricane in 13 months to strike the state. Hurricanes Charlie and Gaston hit the South Carolina coast last season in the same general area.

Ophelia is the seventh hurricane in this year's busy Atlantic hurricane season, which began June 1 and ends Nov. 30. Peak storm activity typically occurs from the end of August through mid-September.

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National Hurricane Center: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/