Shops are selling out of essential supplies for people and their pets ahead of Hurricane Dorian.

Supermarkets in North Carolina - as well as South Carolina and Florida - were close to selling out of bottled water, bread and pet food, among other essentials.

The category five hurricane has already slammed into the Bahamas with sustained winds of up to 180mph (285km/h).

A very dangerous hurricane is coming and people are buying up bags and bags of pet / dog food to make sure that in the aftermath they are taken care of.

Always remember to take care of your pets just as you take care of you ahead of a storm. They're family too!

Unsure of where it will make landfall, life threatening Hurricane Dorian is being taken seriously in North Carolina as water has already begun disappearing off of store shelves several days in advance of a potentially dangerous storm.

Many people here, myself included, have not yet recovered from Hurricane Florence a year ago, so people are taking this VERY seriously!