Hurricane Florence claims lives of 5 in NC, including a mother and baby

Five deaths have been confirmed in North Carolina as a result of Hurricane Florence, which is now a tropical storm.

Earlier Saturday, Director of Emergency Services in Carteret County, Stephen Rea, told ABC11 two people died in Harkers Island on Friday morning. The county later clarified that the two deaths were not related to the storm.

In Wilmington, a mother and infant were killed after a tree fell on their home after Hurricane Florence made landfall in the Carolinas.

The father was transported to a hospital for treatment, the Associated Press reported.

A fifth death happened in Kinston, Lenoir County officials said, when a 78-year-old man was electrocuted at a home Friday morning when he attempted to connect two extension cords outside in the rain.

His body was discovered by family members.
Also in Kinston, a 77-year-old man was found dead Friday morning at his home on Middle Street.

It is believed his death was caused when he was blown down by the wind when he went out to check on his hunting dogs.

According to Pender County Emergency Management Director Tom Collins, a woman in Hampstead died.
Collins told WWAY the woman had a heart attack Friday morning.

Emergency crews were unable to get to her because of a downed tree in the road.

“Our hearts go out to the families of those who died in this storm,” Cooper said. “Hurricane Florence is going to continue its violent grind across our state for days. Be extremely careful and stay alert.”

Significant flooding was being reported Friday along the Neuse, Pamlico and Pungo rivers in coastal North Carolina because of storm surge.

Those conditions were expected to worsen significantly.

“We are expecting several more days of rain,” Cooper said. “Our focus now is getting people away from immediate danger. And then it will shift to putting our communities back together.”

In South Carolina, a 61-year-old woman was killed late Friday when the vehicle she was driving struck a tree. Capt. Kelley Hughes of the South Carolina Highway Patrol confirmed to the Associated Press that the death was storm-related.