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Hurricane Helene live updates: 6 dead, 4 million without power

Flash flood emergencies are in effect in Georgia and the Carolinas.

ByEmily Shapiro, David Brennan, Leah Sarnoff, and Julia Reinstein
Last Updated: September 27, 2024, 7:11 AM EDT

Helene made landfall in Florida's Big Bend region Thursday night as a massive Category 4 hurricane -- the strongest hurricane to make landfall in the Big Bend on record.

Helene has since weakened to a tropical storm and is now pushing through Georgia and the Carolinas, bringing catastrophic rainfall and life-threatening flash flooding as the storm moves toward Tennessee.

Latest headlines:

Here's how the news is developing.
2 hours ago

Helene death toll rises to 6

At least six people have died as Hurricane Helene slams the South.

Jamir Lewis wades through flood waters with his two daughters Nylah and Aria due to storm surge from Hurricane Helene, Sept. 27, 2024 in Crystal River, Fla.
Luis Santana/Tampa Bay Times/ZUMA via Shutterstock

In Charlotte, North Carolina, one person was killed and another was injured when a tree fell on a house, according to the Mecklenburg EMS Agency.

Two people died in Laurens County in central Georgia, according to local officials. Two others died in nearby Wheeler County, Georgia, Gov. Brian Kemp confirmed.

In Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday that one person was killed on the I-4 highway near Tampa when a sign fell on a car.

A capsized boat washes ashore as Hurricane Helene churns offshore on Sept. 26, 2024, in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

-ABC News' Ahmad Hemingway

3 hours ago

Mandatory evacuations ordered amid 'catastrophic rain' in North Carolina

Mandatory evacuations are in place for some residents of Asheville in western North Carolina as severe flooding from Hurricane Helene hits the state.

WTVD's Tamara Scott has the latest on the storm's impact.
1:40

North Carolina faces flooding emergency

WTVD's Tamara Scott has the latest on the storm's impact.

Evacuations were ordered for the Swannanoa River Valley area due to a high risk of flooding from the "catastrophic rain," officials said.

Parts of the state have recorded up to 15 inches of rain, with more expected through Friday. Some areas are expecting as much as 20 inches of rain through the course of the storm. Dangerous landslides are also expected.

Water rescues and flooded homes have been reported in Haywood County, just west of Asheville.

-ABC News’ Max Golembo

6:21 AM EDT

200 rescued from rising waters in Pasco County, Florida

About 200 people have been rescued overnight from the rising floodwaters in Pasco County, Florida, just north of Tampa, according to the Pasco Sheriff’s Office.

The water is receding Friday morning and rescue calls have slowed, authorities said.

5:14 AM EDT

Helene weakens to tropical storm

Hurricane Helene was downgraded to a tropical storm around 100 miles southeast of Atlanta early on Friday, as its sustained wind speed slowed to 70 mph.

Life-threatening winds, flash flooding, rain and storm surge are ongoing through Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina.

Helene is expected to slow and weaken as it travels north-northwest through Georgia toward the Tennessee-North Carolina border, the National Hurricane Center said.

Helene is projected to turn post-tropical on Friday afternoon or Friday night, the NHC said.

"However, the fast forward speed will allow strong, damaging winds, especially in gusts, to penetrate well inland across the southeastern United States, including over the higher terrain of the southern Appalachians," the NHC said.

-ABC News' Max Golembo