Hurricane Matthew kills over 800 in Haiti, glances past Florida

At least 16 deaths are now associated with Hurricane Matthew, the powerful storm that made landfall in SC as it made its way up the Atlantic coast Saturday.

The hurricane has moved up the coast and is expected to hit North Carolina with 105mph winds within the next 24 hours, prompting officials to call for any residents still in the area to evacuate. The storm was moving northeast at 14 miles per hour.

“You’re a fool”, said Daytona Beach Police Chief Michael Chitwood. Three deaths in the state have been blamed on Matthew.

“Our fire chief came and risked his own life, and other police officers and firemen came and risked their own lives, and winds were gusting at 75 miles per hour, to make sure everyone was out of these homes”, North Myrtle Beach Mayor Marilyn Hatley told the The Sun News.

The flooding disaster is forecast to slowly unfold over the next several days as all that rain – more than a foot in places – flows into rivers and downstream, likely causing more inundation in numerous same places devastated by a similar deluge from Hurricane Floyd in 1999. About one-quarter of the homes without power were located there. The city said that some 200 vehicles were abandoned and many roads remained impassable. Officers can’t respond to anything else at this time.

“I cannot stress enough how serious an issue this hurricane could be for North Carolina, not only in damaging structures, but also risking human life”, said McCrory.

Despite the welcome news of a weaker hurricane hitting the Atlantic shore, officials are very concerned about perilous flooding along the coast from Georgia to North Carolina.

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory says that the death toll in his state from Hurricane Matthew now stands at 10.

Jacksonville was among the places under a hurricane warning – its first such warning in 17 years, according to The Weather Channel.

Parts of SC were flooded and three dams were breached, officials said Saturday afternoon.

Palm trees blow in the rain and wind from Hurricane Matthew, October 7, 2016 in Ormond Beach, Florida.

The Jacksonville Governor’s office said the storm had cut power to about a million customers in Florida.

Friday night, Haley said 2,500 National Guard members had been activated in an effort to cope with the storm.

The hurricane also lashed NASA’s rocket launch facility at Cape Canaveral on Friday, causing power outages and damaging roofs as heavy winds battered the Florida coast, the U.S. space agency said.

Thousands of Florida residents moved to shelters.

Television images later showed water swirling through streets in the historic downtown district of St. Augustine, the oldest US city and a major tourist attraction.

“We rode out the storm”.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott said more than 6,000 people stayed in shelters overnight, but he appeared relieved that the state had been spared from greater harm. The Center advised the winds at the top of a 30-story building will averag one Saffir-Simpson category higher than the winds near the surface.