Hurricane Florence: Mother and baby among five killed as storm hits US east coast
At least five people have died, including a mother and her baby, as Hurricane Florence battered the southeastern coast of the US.
Later downgraded to a tropical storm, slow-moving Florence arrived over North and South Carolina just after 7am local time on Friday, bringing torrential rain and severe floods.
A woman and her baby died in their home after it was struck by a tree
The mother and baby were among a family of three who were in a house in Wilmington, North Carolina, when it was struck by a falling tree.
The father was taken to hospital, reportedly in a critical condition.
Strong winds blew the roof off a petrol station
In Pender County, a woman died of a heart attack. Paramedics who tried to reach her were blocked by debris.
In Lenoir County, a 78-year-old man was electrocuted attempting to connect extension cords, while another man died when he was blown down by high winds while checking on his hunting dogs.
Florence had been a category three hurricane with 120mph winds as of Thursday, but dropped to a category one hurricane before coming ashore.
Street lights were downed in Wilmington
The National Hurricane Center downgraded it to a tropical storm on Friday afternoon, but warned that life-threatening storm surges - in which water is pushed over land that would normally be dry - and catastrophic freshwater flooding were still expected.
Hurricane Florence hit the coast near Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina
The storm caused chaos in the region, with trees strewn across roads, buildings battered and power cut to almost 700,000 homes.
More than 400 people had to be rescued from their homes or vehicles and some 20,000 were taking refuge in shelters across North and South Carolina and Virginia.
A 'Hurricane Party' at a pub in Wilmington without electricity
A woman and her baby are two of the victims
The town of Oriental, North Carolina, got more than 18 inches of rain in just a few hours, while Surf City had 14 inches.
North Carolina's governor Roy Cooper described the storm as "an uninvited brute who doesn't want to leave".
The National Hurricane Center said Florence is expected to be re-categorised as a tropical depression by the time it moves into the mid-Atlantic states and New England in the middle of next week.
Typhoon Mangkhut hit Tuguegarao city in the early hours and it is still too early to assess damage
Meanwhile, Super Typhoon Mangkhut has hit the northern tip of the Philippines, with maximum gusts of 177mph.
Two women died after a hillside collapsed in the city of Baguio, police said.
More from Hurricane Florence
Florence's landfall like being under a power shower
Hurricane Florence floods North Carolina town
Hurricane season: Record seven active storms across globe
Hurricane Florence: Storm force winds for North Carolina within hours
Hurricane Florence: US east coast to be hit by 40 inches of rain
'I'm riding it out': Tough decisions in eye of Hurricane Florence
"As we go forward, this number will go higher," said the head of the national civil defence office, Ricardo Jalad.
A woman also died in neighbouring Taiwan after being swept out to sea.
Posted in: HURRICANE FLORENCE
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Later downgraded to a tropical storm, slow-moving Florence arrived over North and South Carolina just after 7am local time on Friday, bringing torrential rain and severe floods.
A woman and her baby died in their home after it was struck by a tree
The mother and baby were among a family of three who were in a house in Wilmington, North Carolina, when it was struck by a falling tree.
The father was taken to hospital, reportedly in a critical condition.
Strong winds blew the roof off a petrol station
In Pender County, a woman died of a heart attack. Paramedics who tried to reach her were blocked by debris.
In Lenoir County, a 78-year-old man was electrocuted attempting to connect extension cords, while another man died when he was blown down by high winds while checking on his hunting dogs.
Florence had been a category three hurricane with 120mph winds as of Thursday, but dropped to a category one hurricane before coming ashore.
Street lights were downed in Wilmington
The National Hurricane Center downgraded it to a tropical storm on Friday afternoon, but warned that life-threatening storm surges - in which water is pushed over land that would normally be dry - and catastrophic freshwater flooding were still expected.
Hurricane Florence hit the coast near Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina
The storm caused chaos in the region, with trees strewn across roads, buildings battered and power cut to almost 700,000 homes.
More than 400 people had to be rescued from their homes or vehicles and some 20,000 were taking refuge in shelters across North and South Carolina and Virginia.
A 'Hurricane Party' at a pub in Wilmington without electricity
A woman and her baby are two of the victims
The town of Oriental, North Carolina, got more than 18 inches of rain in just a few hours, while Surf City had 14 inches.
North Carolina's governor Roy Cooper described the storm as "an uninvited brute who doesn't want to leave".
The National Hurricane Center said Florence is expected to be re-categorised as a tropical depression by the time it moves into the mid-Atlantic states and New England in the middle of next week.
Typhoon Mangkhut hit Tuguegarao city in the early hours and it is still too early to assess damage
Meanwhile, Super Typhoon Mangkhut has hit the northern tip of the Philippines, with maximum gusts of 177mph.
Two women died after a hillside collapsed in the city of Baguio, police said.
More from Hurricane Florence
Florence's landfall like being under a power shower
Hurricane Florence floods North Carolina town
Hurricane season: Record seven active storms across globe
Hurricane Florence: Storm force winds for North Carolina within hours
Hurricane Florence: US east coast to be hit by 40 inches of rain
'I'm riding it out': Tough decisions in eye of Hurricane Florence
"As we go forward, this number will go higher," said the head of the national civil defence office, Ricardo Jalad.
A woman also died in neighbouring Taiwan after being swept out to sea.
Posted in: HURRICANE FLORENCE
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North Carolina flooded in hurricane
International Space Station view of hurricane
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'No-deal' Brexit means no £39bn divorce bill…
What you need to know about the new 'no-deal…
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Philippines lashed by winds of more than 100mph Next article
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