Nearly 1 million lose power as Florence crawls through Carolinas

Nearly 1 million people have lost power as Tropical Storm Florence moves through the East Coast after making landfall in North Carolina on Friday, according to The Post and Courier.

North Carolina officials confirmed earlier Saturday that five people died from the storm, but multiple media outlets reported the death toll was eight by Saturday afternoon.

{mosads}While reduced winds caused the storm to be downgraded from a Category 4 hurricane to Category 1 and then down to a tropical storm, it is expected to pour several inches of rain down on towns in North and South Carolina. 

States of emergency have been declared for Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia.

President Trump also approved a North Carolina disaster declaration on Friday, ordering federal aid to recovery efforts in areas affected by Florence. He will visit areas affected by Florence next week once conditions improve and his visit won’t disrupt recovery efforts, the White House said Friday.