Hurricane Hermine slammed into Florida leaving one person dead, 253,000 people across four states without power and caused dozens of towns in its path to evacuate as it continues to cause chaos on its way into Georgia and the Carolinas.

The Category 1 storm hit just east of St. Marks around 1.30am EDT with winds around 80mph, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center.

Projected storm surges of up to 12 feet menaced a wide swath of the coast and an expected 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 had not been hit by a hurricane since Kate in 1985.

Florida Governor Rick Scott, who declared a state of emergency in 51 counties, said 6,000 National Guard members are ready to mobilize once the storm has passed.

Hermine - downgraded to a tropical storm - was weakening as it moved into southern Georgia, and was centered about 35 northeast of Valdosta, Georgia, moving north-northeast near 14mph as of 8am EDT on Friday.

After pushing through Georgia on Friday, Hermine was expected to move into the Carolinas on Saturday and up the East Coast with the potential for drenching rain and deadly flooding in New Jersey and New York City over the Labor Day weekend.

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