Hurricane Hermine battered Florida's coast

 

 

Hurricane Hermine, the first to hit Florida in a decade, has killed one person and caused severe damage along the state's northern Gulf Coast.

As the system pushed into Georgia, it knocked down power lines leaving hundreds of thousands without power.
Gusts of 80mph (130km/h) caused storm surges that flooded part of the coast.
In the town of Cedar Key, waters rose more than 9.5ft (2.9 metres), among the highest surges ever seen, according to the National Weather Service.

 

After making landfall early on Friday, Hermine swept through Florida and, weakening to a tropical storm, is now making its way towards South Carolina.

A tropical storm warning was issued for parts of New Jersey, Connecticut and New York City, the National Hurricane Center said.
The US Coast Guard also warned boaters and swimmers along the New York and New Jersey coasts to use caution in what is expected to be rough surf and hazardous rip currents this weekend.

Police in Taylor County, Florida, that has a population of more than 20,000, said the storm had inflicted "severe damage".
In the state capital Tallahassee, where people were urged to move to higher ground to avoid flash floods, at least 70,000 homes were without power at one point, affecting 60% of people in the region.