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Are you affected by Tropical Storm Florence? When it's safe, text, iMessage or WhatsApp your videos, photos and stories to CNN: 347-322-0415
(CNN)Tropical
storm Florence hovered over the Carolinas and pounded the region with
heavy rains Saturday, after it landed as a hurricane and left five
people dead, including an infant.
Florence
crashed ashore in North Carolina as a Category 1 hurricane Friday, and
was downgraded to a tropical storm the same afternoon.
As
night fell, it drifted into South Carolina with maximum sustained winds
of 50 mph, leaving people trapped in flooded homes and promising days
of destruction and human suffering.
The
storm's powerful surges, winds and rain turned some towns into rushing
rivers. It's expected to crawl over parts of the Carolinas into the
weekend, its torrential rain pounding some areas over and over.
It's "relentless and excruciating and very slow," North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said.
Florence's
five fatalities included a mother and her infant killed after a tree
fell on their house in Wilmington, the city's police department said.
The father was hospitalized with injuries.
In
Hampstead, emergency responders going to a call for cardiac arrest
found their path blocked by downed trees. When they got to the home, the
woman was dead, authorities said.
Two
men were also killed in Lenoir County: One was electrocuted while
hooking up a generator and the other while checking on his dogs outside,
emergency officials said..
By Faith Karimi and Jason Hanna, CNN
Key developments
• Florence's location: By
early Saturday, Florence was 25 miles (35 km) west of Myrtle Beach,
South Carolina. It was moving southwest at 5 mph, the National Weather
Service said.
• No electricity:
About 781,000 customers are without power in North Carolina, emergency
officials said. In neighboring South Carolina, 165,000 customers are
without power, officials said.
•'Ready mode':
US Army forces and National Guard troops are in "ready mode" to provide
support, including water purification, high water vehicles and rotary
wing aircraft.
• Flooding for miles: Up to 40 inches of rain and storm surges pushing water inland will produce catastrophic flash flooding, the National Hurricane Center says.
It said there will be "flooding miles and miles inland." Some areas in
South Carolina could see rainfall totals of up to 15 inches, forecasters
said.
• Rising rivers: Rivers
in North Carolina are expected to crest higher than during 2016's
Hurricane Matthew in some areas, emergency officials said.
Trapped and rescued:
In hard-hit New Bern, NC, rescuers plucked more than 200 people from
rising waters Friday. About 150 more had to wait to be rescued as
conditions worsened. That number was down to 40 later in the day.
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Michael
Nelson floats in a boat fashioned from a metal tub and fishing floats
after the Neuse River flooded September 13 in New Bern.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Powerful winds and waves destroy portions of a boat dock and boardwalk in Atlantic Beach on September 13.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Residents wade through streets flooded by the Neuse River in New Bern on September 13.
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Astronaut Alexander Gerst posted this photo on Twitter of Hurricane Florence saying, "It's chilling, even from space." Gerst is aboard the International Space Station.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Evacuees take refuge at Burgaw Middle School in Burgaw, North Carolina, on September 12.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Marge
Brown says goodbye to her father, George Brown, before his evacuation
from a health care home in Morehead City, North Carolina, on September
12.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Workers
take boats out of the water in Wanchese Harbor in Wanchese, North
Carolina, on September 12 as the Outer Banks prepares for Florence.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Astronaut Gerst also posted this photo to Twitter
on September 12, saying, "Watch out, America! #HurricaneFlorence is so
enormous, we could only capture her with a super wide-angle lens from
the @Space_Station, 400 km directly above the eye. Get prepared on the
East Coast, this is a no-kidding nightmare coming for you."
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Jeff Bryant, left, and James Evans board the windows of a business in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, on Tuesday, September 11.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
People fill sandbags in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, on September 11.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Both
lanes of Interstate 26 flow westbound in North Charleston, South
Carolina, toward Columbia as people evacuate inland on September 11.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Laura
Gretch holds Frances, a Chihuahua mix, as she helps unload cats and
dogs arriving at the Humane Rescue Alliance in Washington from Norfolk,
Virginia, on September 11.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
A Costco employee attempts to direct traffic at gas pumps in Apex, North Carolina, near Raleigh on September 11.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Veronica
Gallardo and Robert Kelly place a plastic tarp over an American flag
inside the Casemate Museum at Fort Monroe in Hampton, Virginia, on
September 11.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
A man eyes a store's bare bread shelves as people stock up on food in Myrtle Beach on September 11.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Chuck
Ledford, left, watches cartoons on a phone with his daughter Misty as
they seek shelter at Emma B. Trask Middle School in Wilmington, North
Carolina, on Tuesday, September 11.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Workers board up the Wrightsville Beach Art Co. in North Carolina.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Scott Fleenor, bottom, and Jeremiah Trendell board over the windows of a business in Myrtle Beach.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Waves crash into the Second Avenue Pier in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, on Friday, September 14.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Volunteers help rescue three children from a flooded home in James City, North Carolina.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
A collapsed tree is seen in New Bern, North Carolina.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Soldiers
from the North Carolina National Guard reinforce a low area with
sandbags as Florence approaches Lumberton, North Carolina.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Robert Simmons Jr. and his kitten "Survivor" are rescued from floodwaters in New Bern.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Teddie
Davis checks on one of the New Bern's signature bear statues that was
toppled by the storm in downtown New Bern. Another one of the civic
symbol bears, seen in the background, ended up in the middle of the
street.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Rising waters threaten downtown Washington, North Carolina, as the Pamlico River overruns its' banks.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
An abandoned van sits on a flooded road near New Bern.
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A boat sits wedged in trees in Oriental, North Carolina, near New Bern.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Members
of a Federal Emergency Management Agency team from California search a
flooded neighborhood in Fairfield Harbour, North Carolina.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Rescue
workers attempt to remove a giant tree that toppled onto a house in
Wilmington, North Carolina, on September 14. Two people died when the
tree fell on the house -- among the first storm-related deaths due to
Hurricane Florence.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Electric poles that snapped in half sway from their wires in Wilmington on September 14.
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Lee Casteen, left, and Try Hinton use a chainsaw to clear a tree blocking a road in Wilmington on September 14.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Rescue workers help a woman and her dog from a flooded house in James City on September 14.
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Christian Philips uses an axe to split a tree that was blocking a road in Wilmington on September 14.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
The Neuse River rises above its' banks and pushes into downtown New Bern on Thursday, September 13.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Waves crash around Oceanana Pier in Atlantic Beach, North Carolina, as Florence's outer bands begin to be felt on September 13.
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Michael
Nelson floats in a boat fashioned from a metal tub and fishing floats
after the Neuse River flooded September 13 in New Bern.
Hide Caption
18 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Powerful winds and waves destroy portions of a boat dock and boardwalk in Atlantic Beach on September 13.
Hide Caption
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Residents wade through streets flooded by the Neuse River in New Bern on September 13.
Hide Caption
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Astronaut Alexander Gerst posted this photo on Twitter of Hurricane Florence saying, "It's chilling, even from space." Gerst is aboard the International Space Station.
Hide Caption
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Evacuees take refuge at Burgaw Middle School in Burgaw, North Carolina, on September 12.
Hide Caption
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Marge
Brown says goodbye to her father, George Brown, before his evacuation
from a health care home in Morehead City, North Carolina, on September
12.
Hide Caption
23 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Workers
take boats out of the water in Wanchese Harbor in Wanchese, North
Carolina, on September 12 as the Outer Banks prepares for Florence.
Hide Caption
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Astronaut Gerst also posted this photo to Twitter
on September 12, saying, "Watch out, America! #HurricaneFlorence is so
enormous, we could only capture her with a super wide-angle lens from
the @Space_Station, 400 km directly above the eye. Get prepared on the
East Coast, this is a no-kidding nightmare coming for you."
Hide Caption
25 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Jeff Bryant, left, and James Evans board the windows of a business in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, on Tuesday, September 11.
Hide Caption
26 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
People fill sandbags in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, on September 11.
Hide Caption
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Both
lanes of Interstate 26 flow westbound in North Charleston, South
Carolina, toward Columbia as people evacuate inland on September 11.
Hide Caption
28 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Laura
Gretch holds Frances, a Chihuahua mix, as she helps unload cats and
dogs arriving at the Humane Rescue Alliance in Washington from Norfolk,
Virginia, on September 11.
Hide Caption
29 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
A Costco employee attempts to direct traffic at gas pumps in Apex, North Carolina, near Raleigh on September 11.
Hide Caption
30 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Veronica
Gallardo and Robert Kelly place a plastic tarp over an American flag
inside the Casemate Museum at Fort Monroe in Hampton, Virginia, on
September 11.
Hide Caption
31 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
A man eyes a store's bare bread shelves as people stock up on food in Myrtle Beach on September 11.
Hide Caption
32 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Chuck
Ledford, left, watches cartoons on a phone with his daughter Misty as
they seek shelter at Emma B. Trask Middle School in Wilmington, North
Carolina, on Tuesday, September 11.
Hide Caption
33 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Workers board up the Wrightsville Beach Art Co. in North Carolina.
Hide Caption
34 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Scott Fleenor, bottom, and Jeremiah Trendell board over the windows of a business in Myrtle Beach.
Hide Caption
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Waves crash into the Second Avenue Pier in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, on Friday, September 14.
Hide Caption
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Volunteers help rescue three children from a flooded home in James City, North Carolina.
Hide Caption
2 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
A collapsed tree is seen in New Bern, North Carolina.
Hide Caption
3 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Soldiers
from the North Carolina National Guard reinforce a low area with
sandbags as Florence approaches Lumberton, North Carolina.
Hide Caption
4 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Robert Simmons Jr. and his kitten "Survivor" are rescued from floodwaters in New Bern.
Hide Caption
5 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Teddie
Davis checks on one of the New Bern's signature bear statues that was
toppled by the storm in downtown New Bern. Another one of the civic
symbol bears, seen in the background, ended up in the middle of the
street.
Hide Caption
6 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Rising waters threaten downtown Washington, North Carolina, as the Pamlico River overruns its' banks.
Hide Caption
7 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
An abandoned van sits on a flooded road near New Bern.
Hide Caption
8 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
A boat sits wedged in trees in Oriental, North Carolina, near New Bern.
Hide Caption
9 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Members
of a Federal Emergency Management Agency team from California search a
flooded neighborhood in Fairfield Harbour, North Carolina.
Hide Caption
10 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Rescue
workers attempt to remove a giant tree that toppled onto a house in
Wilmington, North Carolina, on September 14. Two people died when the
tree fell on the house -- among the first storm-related deaths due to
Hurricane Florence.
Hide Caption
11 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Electric poles that snapped in half sway from their wires in Wilmington on September 14.
Hide Caption
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Lee Casteen, left, and Try Hinton use a chainsaw to clear a tree blocking a road in Wilmington on September 14.
Hide Caption
13 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Rescue workers help a woman and her dog from a flooded house in James City on September 14.
Hide Caption
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Christian Philips uses an axe to split a tree that was blocking a road in Wilmington on September 14.
Hide Caption
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
The Neuse River rises above its' banks and pushes into downtown New Bern on Thursday, September 13.
Hide Caption
16 of 35
Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Waves crash around Oceanana Pier in Atlantic Beach, North Carolina, as Florence's outer bands begin to be felt on September 13.
Hide Caption
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Photos: In pictures: Florence drenches Carolinas
Michael
Nelson floats in a boat fashioned from a metal tub and fishing floats
after the Neuse River flooded September 13 in New Bern.
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She called 911. No one came
Those who stayed behind provided harrowing accounts of getting trapped in homes surrounded by water.
Annazette Riley-Cromartie said she and her family thought they'd be
safe in their brick home in eastern North Carolina. But the water kept
rising.
She, her husband and
three children escaped into the attic, but the winds howled and the
family fled to an upper floor bedroom.
As
they waited for emergency workers, they heard neighbors screaming for
help. Her 6-foot-2 husband went to help, but the water was above his
chest, she said.
"It's the worst feeling in the world to hear people yelling for help and you can't do anything," she said.
She
said she called 911, but no one came. Eventually, a volunteer rescue
team that had arrived in North Carolina from Indiana came with a boat
and rescued them.
An
area in downtown Wilmington, North Carolina, usually meant for street
parking and relaxing on park benches is inundated by water from the
swollen Cape Fear River.
States of emergency
Rainfall
totals for the storm will be similar to those in hurricanes Dennis and
Floyd in 1999, the National Weather Service's Chris Wamsley said
"The
only difference is, back then it was within 14 days," he said. With
Florence, it'll be the same amount of rainfall in three days.
Officials
in several states have declared states of emergency, including in the
Carolinas, Georgia, Virginia and Maryland, where coastal areas are still
recovering from summer storms.
High winds and a storm surge from then-Hurricane Florence hit Swansboro, North Carolina, on Friday.
Florence
is one of four named storms in the Atlantic. According to the National
Hurricane Center, the storm will travel through upstate South Carolina,
be downgraded to a tropical depression, then turn north toward the Ohio
Valley.
As it moves near Ohio and
West Virginia, it will become a remnant low. Then it will swing to the
northeast in the middle of next week on a path to the Atlantic Ocean
near Nova Scotia, where it will be an extratropical low with gale-force
winds.
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