Forecasters said hurricane-force winds could blast the coast for nearly 20 hours.
Still, some wouldn't budge. Marja Morgan said she planned to ride out Ivan at her home in Elberta, about 16km inland from Gulf Shores.
"That house has been there through Camille and Frederic," she said. "It'll be there through this."
The National Weather Service issued a flood watch for as far away as North Carolina, which suffered heavy flooding last week from the remnants of Hurricane Frances. The heavy rain also could trigger mud and rock slides.
More trouble lingered out in the Atlantic. Tropical Storm Jeanne could become a hurricane late Wednesday in the Caribbean as moved westward across the north coast of Puerto Rico. It could be near Florida's east coast as early as the weekend.
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