State events for Realtors that were two years in the making and set to be held in Wilmington starting Saturday were canceled as a result of Hurricane Florence.

The State of Real Estate and 'XCHANGE 18 Convention & Expo will no longer be filling hotel rooms and the Wilmington Convention Center, NC Realtors announced on the organization's website.

Celebrity chef and author Vivian Howard was scheduled to be the keynote speaker, with a host of other national, state and local panelists and speakers on the roster.

"Hundreds of members, speakers, exhibitors, community members, and sponsors, as well as staff, were scheduled to arrive in Wilmington in a matter of days," according to an announcement on the event's website. "NC Realtors volunteers and staff, along with the city of Wilmington, Convention and Visitors Bureau, and all of our venues, speakers, and vendors, have worked tirelessly for over two years planning these events."

Registered attendees or exhibitors with hotel reservations for either event were advised to contact the hotel and cancel reservations as soon as possible.

"Many hotels are waiving cancellation fees and cancellation notice periods but being proactive will be best," the announcement stated. "For convention and exhibitor registration refunds, NC Realtors is currently in communication with the event insurance provider to discuss how and when these will be issued and follow-up with another message to registered attendees in the very near future."

NC Realtors staff members are rescheduling required business meetings, with updates coming to the organization's website, via email and through social media channels, the announcement stated.