(Image source from: The Telegraph)

As hurricane Florence made landfall in North Carolina, at least thirteen people were killed.

The Florence has battered the state with a powerful combination of wind and rains, and consequently, cautions were issued regarding the risk of life-threatening flash flooding in parts of North and South Carolina as well as in Virginia.

The hurricane downgraded to a tropical storm on Friday but sustained to soak the East Coast area with rain, resulting in downing trees and damaging homes. Some areas grappled with strong flooding.

Parts of North Carolina and New Bern were 10 feet submerged after local rivers overflowed their banks and hundreds required rescue in the early hours of Saturday. Thousands of people were staying in emergency housings.

                      (Image source from: The Al Bawaba)

According to a report, evacuation warnings were issued for 1.7 million people in the region.

With winds of 65mph, Florence was grinding over the eastern states. It was predicted to keep lashing parts of North and South Carolinas into the weekend, said the Washington Post.

According to the National Hurricane Centre, up to 40 inches of rain and storm surges pushing water inland will produce catastrophic flash flooding.

Two people in Carteret County died due to the storm, officials said.

A mother and her infant were killed in Wilmington when a tree fell on their home. The child's father was taken to the hospital with critical injuries.

Two men, who were in their 70s killed in Lenoir County. One was killed connecting an electrical generator and another was killed in a wind-related incident when checking on dogs outside his property.

An official said a woman died of cardiac arrest in Hampstead after emergency responders had a route to reach her blocked by downed trees.

By Sowmya Sangam