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People are splashed by churning surf from Tampa Bay as Hurricane Helene passes offshore on Thursday, in St Petersburg, Florida
Photograph: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
![people being splashed](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/a26edbf052bad11ad48e91cad511681702cb4687/0_0_6000_4000/master/6000.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=df7a011f233317627aa2962439f35c31)
An American flag submerged in floodwaters in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in the Shore Acres neighborhood of St Petersburg, Florida, on Friday
Photograph: Mike Carlson/AP
![submerged american flag in brown water](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5a4476a402afeb0586ddb686d9c0b79212e56824/0_0_3500_2332/master/3500.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=7ad35171a2ee517c3271ce53a994c14b)
People board up windows to prepare for Hurricane Helene, in Old Town, Florida, on Wednesday
Photograph: Cristóbal Herrera/EPA
![people boarding up windows of a house](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/e053fe9a65d24f8a708033e538f0bfe364f7f2b2/0_0_5000_3335/master/5000.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=59829aea1628316df68519b739fd4093)
Water overlaps into Ballast Point park, which sits on the edge of Tampa Bay, on Thursday
Photograph: Dave Decker/Zuma Press Wire/Rex/Shutterstock
![grey water submerging a sign](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/d62568e93359e9c95e73cbbd32aace7861cd5b87/0_0_6000_4000/master/6000.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=1ddbd3af882ef6e64c17be1ad3303208)
A Citrus county firefighter carries an 11-year-old while conducting rescues from floodwaters in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene on Friday in Crystal River, Florida
Photograph: Luis Santana/AP
![a firefighter in yellow fluorescent jacket carries boy through floodwaters](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/9f5864aa6b5517541cfeda970269f67af59e49c2/0_0_4878_3252/master/4878.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=4ad3a588c985e38c59e7eb6e841e3e3e)
A damaged 100-year-old home crushed by an oak tree in Valdosta, Georgia, on Friday
Photograph: Mike Stewart/AP
![a white house with blue windows smashed up by a tree](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/cd0aabae1b5e369f293f5ba85266a2e733f49e0a/0_0_5600_3734/master/5600.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=f3d04ff2748466e1aed11b48c6a84211)
People watch the news as they wait for the arrival of Hurricane Helene at Lincoln high school, which was opened as a shelter, in Tallahassee, Florida, on Thursday
Photograph: Kathleen Flynn/Reuters
![people watch the news on a tv](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/10c0db4181e6fd5104c2bdb99416166fed6dabfc/0_0_5500_3667/master/5500.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=df6d617714c11bba0177321160ecee99)
Waves crash against a building ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Helene in Cedar Key, Florida, on Thursday
Photograph: Miguel J Rodriguez Carrillo/AFP/Getty Images
![waves crash against building](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/ea4ccdf8c2f05c078e355275e900baf26c0391f0/0_0_5000_3327/master/5000.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=61d6260a0a711a0b95c921eaa541f7ea)
A man rows through floodwaters from Peachtree Creek in search of Peachtree Park Apartment residents needing assistance after Tropical Storm Helene raced through Atlanta, Georgia, on Friday
Photograph: Erik S Lesser/EPA
![man in a canoe rows through floodwaters which come halfway up a car](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/9c8f08e5bf256a92964262d414164ef9f00e4829/0_0_5044_3363/master/5044.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=bce592ec09aec054cc77e329b0428ce2)
Debris is left inside a flooded store after Hurricane Helene made landfall in Cedar Key, Florida, on Friday
Photograph: Miguel J Rodriguez Carrillo/AFP/Getty Images
![debris inside a flooded shop](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/181dda488cd230012aa75a815af4666204e7ce0a/0_0_5000_3327/master/5000.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=747a8f631319c3e55271653d48b53bd1)
A man wades through floodwaters with his two daughters, in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene on Friday in Crystal River, Florida
Photograph: Luis Santana/AP
![Man walks through flooded street with one daughter on his shoulders and the other beside him](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2818b4e9a17cc185eeec8b273ecc309097a1b3d3/0_0_4776_3184/master/4776.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=4f01164d67b630a17e90a5db18f17c0e)
A large oak lies on a home after it fell due to Tropical Storm Helene in Anderson, South Carolina, on Friday
Photograph: Ken Ruinard/The Anderson Independent Mail/USA Today Network/Reuters
![A big oak tree fallen on to a house](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/776d2b10d9aa03280a60905d46659806505a4b17/0_0_2400_1355/master/2400.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=e3d01d5aedf0d3f053ad903cea8584ba)
People stand outside of a motel amid damage from Hurricane Helene in Perry, Florida, on Friday
Photograph: Marco Bello/Reuters
![people stand outside damaged motel](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/bf4683d7989348ba45e4e1b8c4987170120ac900/0_0_5472_3648/master/5472.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=b8619c7a1efcf8d9c7742df1261a3bb0)
Flooded streets near Peachtree Creek in Atlanta, Georgia, on Friday
Photograph: Megan Varner/Getty Images
![flooded street with white car almost completely under water](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/fcc307d9e7c666ea29aa532790f71a503e9361cc/0_0_5932_3955/master/5932.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=5acd13c341f45f153a05ba25334ba02e)
A mother and daughter take shelter from Hurricane Helene at Leon high school near downtown Tallahassee, Florida, on Thursday
Photograph: Octavio Jones/Reuters
![woman reads book and daughter fans herself](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/760892d77b9101ec2ecc06daa9f019a8acefd254/0_0_3000_2000/master/3000.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=52e7c0dd77db39a45153dddcd94ee4b0)
Damage left behind by Hurricane Helene in Cedar Key, Florida, on Friday
Photograph: Cristóbal Herrera/EPA
![a damaged building](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/05f4deb7b6158518c555b35ad21429fb3592bf86/0_0_5000_3335/master/5000.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=006c9f823a3e14eee719f48d9c1af93e)
Flood waters inundate the main street in Tarpon Springs, Florida, on Friday
Photograph: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
![flooded street photographed from above](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/613feed07fd141f624df3acf12dd0c90cf40bebf/0_0_6000_3375/master/6000.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=4afc802ecfce6e48ea4ae365a024f712)