TAMPA, Fla., Dhu-AlHijjah 2, 1437, Sep 3, 2016, SPA -- Hurricane Hermine wreaked havoc across Florida on Friday, knocking out power to nearly 300,000 homes and businesses, flooding low-lying areas and raising concerns about the spread of the Zika virus from pools of standing water left behind, according to Reuters. The first hurricane to make landfall in Florida in 11 years, Hermine came ashore early on Friday near the Gulf shore town of St. Marks, Florida, 20 miles (30 km) south of the capital of Tallahassee, packing winds of 80 mph (130 kph) and churning up a devastating storm surge in coastal areas. Heavy downpours and high surf left parts of some communities under water early Friday, with mandatory evacuations ordered in parts of five northwestern Florida counties. One storm-related death was reported by authorities in the northern Florida town of Ocala, where a fallen tree killed a homeless man sleeping in his tent. Hermine, later downgraded to a tropical storm, was expected to snarl Labor Day holiday travel as it churned northeast after battering Florida's $89 billion tourism industry. As of 2 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT, the fourth named storm of the 2016 Atlantic hurricane season had reached the border between Georgia and South Carolina, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said. The governors of Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia declared emergencies for all or parts of their states. Though sustained winds had weakened to 50 mph (80 kph), the tempest headed toward the Atlantic seaboard on a path where tens of millions of Americans live, prompting storm watches and warnings stretching as far north as Rhode Island, NHC said. It could strengthen again over the Atlantic and possibly douse the southeastern and mid-Atlantic states with up to 15 inches (38 cm) of rain through Sunday, with heavy showers possibly hitting coastal Delaware and New Jersey starting on Saturday night, the center said. New Jersey, still mindful of the devastation caused by superstorm Sandy in 2012, was on high alert as emergency officials advised residents to prepare for flooding, high winds and a surge of seawater. -- SPA 01:03 LOCAL TIME 22:03 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w