Hurricane Florence weakens to Category 1 storm: US forecaster
Hurricane Florance
National Hurricane Center said the maximum sustained winds of Florence were 90 miles per hour (150 kilometers per hour), dropping it to the weakest of five categories on the Saffir-Simpson scale.
US forecasters late Thursday downgraded Hurricane Florence to a Category 1 storm, as its outer edge lashed the Carolinas with strong winds and heavy rain.
In its 0300 GMT advisory, the National Hurricane Center said the maximum sustained winds of Florence were 90 miles per hour (150 kilometers per hour), dropping it to the weakest of five categories on the Saffir-Simpson scale.
But the storm still carried "very dangerous winds," the Center added.
On Wednesday, Florence was downgraded twice from its peak as a Category 4 storm which causes "catastrophic damage."
The outer bands of Hurricane Florence drenched the Carolinas on Thursday, flooding roads, gorging rivers and knocking out power in an ominous glimpse of the damage the storm could inflict when it makes landfall on Friday with millions of people in its path.
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper told a news conference, that a "historic storm" would unleash rains and floods that would inundate almost the entire state.
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In the North Carolina town of Wilmington, which could take a direct hit from Florence, wind gusts were stirring up frothy white caps into the Cape Fear River.
North Carolina will see up to eight months of rain in a two- to three-day period, National Weather Service forecaster Brandon Locklear said in a video briefing.
At least 88,000 people were without power in North Carolina with the brunt of the storm yet to come, according to the state's emergency management agency. Millions of people were expected to lose power from the storm and restoration could take weeks.
Roads and intersections on North Carolina's Outer Banks barrier islands were already inundated with water.
Florence's top winds were clocked on Thursday at 100 miles per hour (170 km per hour) as it churned in the Atlantic Ocean, down from a peak of 140 mph (224 kph) earlier this week when it was classified a Category 4 storm.
The storm's centre was about 145 miles (235 km) east of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina as of Thursday night.
About 10 million people live in the path of the slow-moving storm and more than 1 million had been ordered to evacuate the coasts of the Carolinas and Virginia, jamming westbound roads and highways for miles.
At least 12,000 people had taken refuge in 126 emergency shelters, Cooper said, with more facilities being opened.
(With inputs from agencies)