Hurricane No. 4 of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, named Debby, made landfall in Big Bend, Florida, on August 5.
The pouring rains have caused significant damage and killed at least five people so far, including two children.
According to the storm report on the morning of August 6, the center of Hurricane Debby is about 90 km north-northeast of Jacksonville, Florida. Hurricane forecasters say Typhoon No. 4 will dump record amounts of rain and bring severe flooding from northern Florida to southeastern North Carolina through the night of August 9.
Although the strongest winds have decreased to about 72 km/h, the storm has devastated much of the Florida Gulf Coast, causing power lines to break, flooding streets and fallen trees.
Charleston could see more than 12 inches of rain over the next five days, while Savannah could see an average of over a year's worth of rain over the same period. Both cities have imposed mandatory curfews.
The storm is expected to move slowly eastward across Georgia, then enter the Atlantic. By August 7, Debby will turn north and may strengthen before making landfall in South Carolina on the evening of August 8.
North Carolina will also be affected, the storm is expected to appear there on August 9.
As the storm moved mainly through Florida, more than 133,000 customers in the state were still without power as of 1 a.m. Eastern time on August 6.
The figure is over 28,000 in Georgia and is likely to increase as the winds become more intense throughout the morning of August 6.
Authorities have released the latest death toll from the devastating storm as five, including four in Florida and one in Georgia.
A little further south in Sarasota, Florida, police and first responders drove through flooded streets and successfully evacuated about 500 people from flooded homes.
Sarasota City has seen more than 100 inches of rainfall from the storm, more than it did in a month.
serious flooding caused by Debby has also destroyed critical infrastructure across the state.
As Debby moves slowly over land, some areas could be flooded with rainfall of 300-900 mm, or even more, which could cause more damage to roads, bridges and other important infrastructure.
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp deployed 2,000 national guards to support evacuation and rescue.
Roy Cooper, Governor of North Carolina, a state that has not yet been affected, has declared a state of emergency.
President Joe Biden has also approved a request for a state of emergency from Florida, Georgia and North Carolina to mobilize relief efforts.
