ATLANTIC BEACH, N.C. -- Hurricane Ophelia sets its sights on the Carolina coastline after meandering along the eastern seaboard for a week.

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Slideshow: North Carolina Braces For Hurricane Ophelia

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Ophelia Sets Sights On Land

And Jerone Catone, an evacuee from Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, can't help but think, not again.

"I have a friend in (the District of Columbia)," Catone said. "I'll just make way up further north."

Three hundred National Guard members are already poised to move in once Ophelia moves on. North Carolina's governor, sensitive to criticism of the slow response to Katrina, ordered the guard to be in place by Tuesday.

He also ordered a mandatory evacuation of the state's vulnerable barrier islands. And many residents are obeying.

Even though Ophelia is a weak storm, officials fear it could linger with torrential downpours and flooding.

Federal, state and local agencies have truckloads of supplies standing by. A federal emergency management spokesman said ice, water, generators and ready-to-eat meals are in position in the Carolinas and the Mid-Atlantic, so they can be moved around as needed.

Crews on stand-by include search and rescue workers and medical teams.