CARRABELLE, Fla. – Hurricane Hermine made landfall in Florida's Big Bend area early Friday as the first hurricane to hit the state in more than a decade, bringing soaking rain, high winds and thousands of power outages. Injuries were reported in Tallahassee as trees fell onto homes.
The Category 1 storm hit just east of St. Marks around 1:30 a.m. EDT with winds around 80 mph, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center. Hermine later weakened to a tropical storm as it moved farther inland.
A man was found dead under a fallen tree in a wooded area in Ocala about 7 a.m. Friday, according to Marion County deputies.
According to the Orlando Sentinel, high winds tipped over an 18-wheeler, killing its driver and shutting down the drawbridge on U.S. 64 over the Alligator River between Tyrrell and Dare counties in North Carolina.
Deputies said three people were in a tent off South Lake Weir Avenue and two were able to get away to call 911. When the Sheriff's Office arrived, they said they found a man dead under the tree at the site.
Storm surges of up to 12 feet menaced a wide swath of the coast and a drenching of up to 10 inches of rain carried the danger of flooding along the storm's path over land, including the state capital Tallahassee, which hadn't been hit by a hurricane since Kate in 1985.
“We must all remain vigilant," Gov. Rick Scott said Friday morning. "There will be a lot of debris, including uprooted trees and fallen limbs. We expect to see downed traffic lights, road signs and power lines that must be avoided. We also expect to have significant amounts of flood water along coastal and inland areas. Do not travel on the roads until they are clear and it is safe to do so."
WATCH: Gov. Scott surveys damage in Steinhatchee
After pushing through Georgia, Hermine moved into the Carolinas and up the East Coast with the potential for drenching rain and deadly flooding.
The storm left a wake of damage in Steinhatchee, including at a popular business along the water, Sea Hag Marina. The mom-and-pop business worked all day Friday to clean up after storm surge about 2-3 feet high left water damage and mud behind.
Three teenagers from Jacksonville who fish and scallop in Steinhatchee saw News4Jax reports from the area about the extensive damage and drove nearly three hours to help with cleanup.
Zachary Manuel, Josh Manuel and Daniel Burdetsky said they just felt the need to pitch in and help the community that has always embraced them.
On the island community of Cedar key, crews went to work right away clearing debris blocking roads and downed trees on homes. Several buildings were damaged, including the community's only grocery store. The Salvation Army brought in a tractor trailer filled with supplies to help residents.
In Tallahassee, high winds knocked trees onto several houses injuring residents inside, fire-rescue spokesman Mike Bellamy said. He said an unknown number were taken to area hospitals with injuries that weren't thought to be life-threatening. Bellamy said his agency responded to more than 300 calls overnight. State emergency managers said more than 70,000 homes -- 68 percent of residents -- were without electricity Friday morning.
Florida State University alerted students that power is not expected back to campus and residence halls for another 48 hours.
At Florida's Keaton Beach, just south of the state's Big Bend where the peninsula meets the Panhandle, about two dozen people waited on a road just after sunrise Friday trying to get to their homes. Police had the road blocked because of flooding. Taylor County Commissioner Jody DeVane said several homes were damaged.
Dustin Beach, 31, rushed to Keaton Beach on Friday from a hospital in Tallahassee where his wife had given birth Thursday night to a girl.
"When my wife got up this morning she said, 'Go home and check on the house. I need to know where we're going after we leave the hospital,'" Beach said.
Cindy Simpson was waiting near her car, hoping her beach home and boats had made it. "It's a home on stilts so I put everything upstairs. We have two boats in the boat house and I hope they're still there," she said.
In Pasco County, north of Tampa, authorities said flooding forced 18 people from their homes in Green Key and Hudson Beach. Pasco County Fire Rescue and sheriff's deputies used high-water vehicles early Friday to rescue people from rising water. They were taken to a nearby shelter. The Sunshine Skyway Bridge that spans Tampa Bay remained closed Friday morning because of high winds.
In Wakulla County, south of Tallahassee, a couple suffered minor injuries during the storm when they drove into a tree that had fallen in the road, County Administrator Dustin Hinkel said early Friday. He said storm surge of 8 to 10 feet damaged docks and flooded coastal roads. At least seven homes were damaged by falling trees, said Scott Nelson, the county's emergency manager.
As Hermine moved north, Georgia Power estimated about 19,000 homes and businesses were without power statewide early Friday. Many of those were in Valdosta and surrounding Lowndes County, about 15 miles north of the Georgia-Florida line. Lowndes County spokeswoman Paige Dukes said crews were dealing with fallen trees and snapped power lines, but no injuries had been reported. Winds exceeding 55 mph had been recorded in the county, with 4 to 5 inches of rainfall, she said.
The last hurricane to strike Florida was Wilma, a powerful Category 3 storm that arrived on Oct. 24, 2005. It swept across the Everglades and struck heavily populated south Florida, causing five deaths in the state and an estimated $23 billion in damage.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott declared an emergency in 51 counties. He said 6,000 National Guardsmen were poised to mobilize for the storm's aftermath. The governors of Georgia and North Carolina also declared states of emergency.