Four people including an infant and the mother have died as a result of Hurricane Florence. The tropical storm has begun ravaging the coastline after being downgraded from a Category 1 hurricane. The first two casualties in Wilmington, North Carolina were reported after a massive tree came crashing down on their home. The father of the infant child was successfully evacuated and brought to a medical facility with serious injuries. His wife and child were pronounced dead on the scene.
A third person was pronounced after first responders ran into a blockade created by another fallen tree, failing to make the house calls in a timely manner, the second incident occurring this time in Hampstead, North Carolina.
The fourth casualty was a man in Lenoir County, who put himself at risk as he attempted the installation of a generator, according to a statement read by the state Governor Roy Cooper's administrative office. Elsewhere in the Carolinas, "Florence" has been causing inundations in flooded dwelling across both states. "The storm is going to continue its violent grind across our state for days," Cooper warned residents at a news conference this afternoon.
The natural disaster prompted airlines to cancel the majority of outgoing flights, which in itself is cause for concern for resident's who've been flooded out their homes.