Hurricane Florence live updates: Death toll reaches eight in Carolinas as danger from flash flooding soars
Officials say the most dangerous part of the storm could be yet to come
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Your support makes all the difference.Eight people, including a mother and her infant child, have died in the Carolinas from the deadly effects of Hurricane Florence.
The powerful storm flattened trees, buckled buildings and knocked out power to nearly 930,000 homes and businesses as it battered the southeast coast of the US.
It made landfall on Friday with a life-threatening storm surge pushing water inland for miles and more than 60 people had to be pulled from a collapsing motel.
Nearly 400 people had to be rescued from their flooded homes in New Bern, North Carolina, after they decided to try and see out the wind and rain.
Governor Roy Cooper called Florence an "uninvited brute" that could wipe out entire communities as it grinds its way across land.
"The fact is this storm is deadly and we know we are days away from an ending," he said.
Florence was downgraded to a tropical storm with winds of 60 mph (95 kph) as it slowly moved west.
The first known deaths related to the storm were a mother and her infant child who were killed when a tree fell on their house in Wilmington, North Carolina.
In Lenoir County a 78-year-old man was electrocuted and a 77-year-old man was found dead after he went outside to check on his dogs.
A woman also died of a suspected heart attack in Pender county. Although it was not directly related to Florence, emergency services were blocked from attending by storm damage. On Saturday, a further three deaths were confirmed. According to Duplin County Sherriff Blake Wallace, two of the deaths happened outside of Kenansville, while the third happened in Kornegay.
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Experts had warned the effects of the hurricane could be devastating.
“This is a horrific nightmare storm from a meteorological perspective,” University of Georgia meteorology professor Marshall Shepherd said. “We’ve just never seen anything like this. This is just a strange bird.”
The Duke Energy company estimated that between 1 million and 3 million homes could be without power in the wake of the hurricane.
Donald Trump issued a stark warning on Twitter on Wednesday, telling Americans to evacuate and not to “play games with” Florence. “It’s a big one, maybe as big as they’ve seen, and tremendous amounts of water,” he added in a video posted to Twitter.
He claimed federal authorities were “fully prepared” for the hurricane, saying: “The storm will come, it will go, we want everybody to be safe. We’re fully prepared, food, medical, everything you can imagine, we are ready.
“But despite that, bad things can happen when you’re talking about a storm this size. It’s called Mother Nature, you never know. But we know, we love you all, we want you safe, get out of the storm’s way, listen to your local representatives.”
It came just days after an official report criticised the US government’s handling of the response to Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, the US territory where some 3,000 people were killed last autumn.
Apple CEO Tim Cook has announced the company will provide $1m to relief efforts after Hurricane Florence.
Read the latest from our reporter on the scene in North Carolina:
South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster cautioned resident Florence is a slow-moving storm and will be in the region at least two days.
He said residents can expect infrastructure damage because of high winds and flooding leading to closed roads, washed out bridges, and possible landslides.
"The last thing we want to do is lose lives in South Carolina because of impatience," he said.
He also issued a stark warning to would-be looters, commenting that police would show "no mercy" to them.
“This is gonna be a very trying period," he added.
The National Hurricane Center has officially downgraded Florence to a tropical storm since winds have reduced to 70 mph (112 kmh).
To be classified as a hurricane, wind speeds have to be at least 73 mph (117 kmh).
Residents use plywood with the words 'Looters will be shot' to cover the windows of Knuckleheads bar as they try to protect the business in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Almost 640,000 people are already without electricity in North Carolina according to emergency management authorities.
Bladen, Brunswick, Carteret, Columbus, Craven, Cumberland, Duplin, Harnett, Johnston, New Hanover, Onslow, Pender, Sampson and Wake are the counties most affected by the massive power outage.
Ahead of the storm, authorities warned residents could expect to be without power for weeks in some parts of the state.
The Neuse River has flooded the waterfront in New Bern, North Carolina. The city is being particularly hard hit since it is surrounded by the Trent River also.
Out of state swift water rescue teams have been helping in the area.
LOGAN CYRUS/AFP/Getty Images
Officials worry as the Cape Fear River has reached a record 8.28 feet (2.5 meters) high.
Normal water levels are between one and five feet. During Hurricane Matthew in October 2016, the rive reached just over 8.1 feet.
Flight Aware has a live map that shows air travel move around Florence. Several airports in region closed ahead of the storm and hundreds of flights were cancelled or redirected.
RDU is the Raleigh-Durham International Airport in North Carolina.
As Florence begins to lose intensity, the NHC has discontinued its storm surge warning south of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and north of Salvo, North Carolina.
The NHC also replaced the hurricane warning with a tropical storm warning from South Santee River, South Carolina to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, and discontinued the hurricane watch entirely.
Maximum sustained winds have decreased to near 70 mph (110 km/h), and further weakening is expected tonight. Heavy rainfall is still expected to cause "catastrophic" flooding in several areas.
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