This is what the destruction looks like after the passage of Sally 3:40
(CNN) –-
The Alabama coast and the Florida Panhandle face a disappointing recovery Thursday, as floodwaters and chunks of debris surround homes and businesses a day after the deadly Hurricane Sally struck the coast with winds and rain.
Rivers have overflowed there, too, with Sally's remnants still threatening more flooding Thursday as they move into Georgia and the Carolinas.
The system has already left too much misery along the Gulf Coast.
At least one person died and another was missing in Orange Beach, Alabama, Mayor Tony Kennon told CNN affiliate WSFA after Sally hit the coast as a Category 2 hurricane early Wednesday.
In both states, including around Pensacola in Florida, downed trees and power lines have made roads dangerous, and authorities have established curfews and used boats and ocean-going vehicles to help hundreds escape. their homes flooded or surrounded by floods.
READ: Hurricane Sally hit the Gulf Coast.
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In Orange Beach, coastal neighborhoods were covered in water for hours after the storm.
The Alabama National Guard said it still had five high-water evacuation teams working Thursday in Baldwin County, where Orange Beach and Gulf Shores are located.
"Everything that was downstairs has been lost," Matt Wilson told CNN affiliate WPMI on Wednesday of his home in Orange Beach, where he and his family weathered part of the flood.
"The windows in our house were smashed at 3 am or 4 am (Wednesday) and the whole house was shaking like a boat in water," he said.
"We ended up leaving the house during the eye of the storm and waded about 1.5 meters of water to reach the neighbor's house, arm in arm," he said.
Sally moved extremely slowly over these areas, dumping layers of rain - in some places 60cm or more - that caused extensive flooding for miles.
"We had 30 inches of rain in Pensacola, more than 30 inches of rain, which is four months of rain in four hours," said Pensacola Fire Chief Ginny Cranor.
These are the cities that Sally passed through 1:28
«My house is full of water.
I have 5 to 6 inches of water in my house, everywhere, ”Terry Morgan, a resident of Freeport, Florida, told CNN affiliate WJHG.
River flooding is also a problem.
Parts of Interstate 10 were closed Thursday in the Florida Panhandle due to rising waters, including the I-10 bridge over the Shoal River in Okaloosa County, according to the state transportation department and the county Sheriff's Office. from Walton.
In the Alabama resort town of Gulf Shores, Mike Vansickler told WPMI he weathered the storm at his condo, only to end up kayaking inland later.
The National Guard and rescue teams used high seas vehicles to traverse the streets there, while others traveled by canoe or wading.
On Thursday, water continued to hit homes in places like Gulf Shores and Pensacola, and more than 440,000 customers in the two states were still without power, according to utility tracker PowerOutage.us.
Florida resident Tammy Gibbs and her family are staying with a friend who has a generator, a day after police and National Guard troops used a kayak and a jet ski to help them get out from their nearby home. from Perdido Bay east of Pensacola, he told CNN affiliate WBMA.
"She looked out the window at the house and said, 'Gammy, the ocean is in our yard,'" Gibbs told WBMA, recounting her 3-year-old daughter's conversation with her grandmother.
Sally was the fourth hurricane to make landfall in the United States this year, the most for the same date in 16 years.
It reached the coast 16 years after Category 3 Hurricane Ivan struck roughly the same areas.
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Homes and other structures in Gulf Shores, Alabama, were severely damaged by the aftermath of Sally, which made landfall as a Category 2 hurricane.
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Some residents in downtown Pensacola, Florida, had to walk through flooding Wednesday to evacuate the area.
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The flooding was severe in Navarre Beach, Florida, at Sally's expense.
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Members of the Pace Fire Rescue department traverse a flooded highway after Hurricane Sally passed through the area on September 16, 2020 in Pensacola, Florida.
(Credit: Joe Raedle / Getty Images)
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Damaged boats in the Palafox Pier Yacht harbor after Hurricane Sally struck the Pensacola, Florida area on September 16, 2020. The storm has brought heavy rain, winds, and dangerous storm surge to the area.
(Credit: Raedle / Getty Images)
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Hurricane Sally struck the US Gulf Coast early Wednesday morning, forecasting torrential rains that could lead to "historic" and potentially deadly flash floods.
(Credit: CHANDAN KHANNA / AFP via Getty Images)
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A tree fell on a home Wednesday in the Mobile area.
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A boat is washed up near a highway after Sally drives through Orange Beach, Alabama, on September 16.
(Credit: Gerald Herbert / AP)
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A series of cars are left in the middle of a flooded street as Sally passes the area on September 16, 2020. (Credit: Joe Raedle / Getty Images)
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A man walks down a street flooded by Hurricane Sally rains in downtown Pensacola, Florida on September 16, 2020 (Credit: CHANDAN KHANNA / AFP via Getty Images)
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People stock up on ice and other items at an affected store near Spanish Fort, Alabama.
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A man walks his bike down a flooded street in Pensacola, Florida, on September 16, 2020, as Sally causes heavy rain and winds.
(Credit: CHANDAN KHANNA / AFP via Getty Images)
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A man tries to save his hat amid the destruction of the strong wind caused by Hurricane Sally, now a tropical storm, in Mobile, Alabama on September 16, 2020 (Credit: CHANDAN KHANNA / AFP via Getty Images)
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John Terrezza looks down a flooded street in front of his home after Sally passed through the area on September 16, 2020 in Pensacola, Florida.
(Credit: Joe Raedle / Getty Images)
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A vehicle transits a flooded highway in Pensacola, Florida, following Sally's passage on September 16, 2020 (Credit: Joe Raedle / Getty Images)
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A business owner looks down a flooded street in Pensacola, Florida, on September 16.
(Credit: Joe Raedle / Getty Images).
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A man walks through a flooded parking lot after Sally's outer bands made landfall in Gulf Shores, Alabama, on September 15, 2020. (Credit: Joe Raedle / Getty Images)
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A person observes a neighborhood flooded by the effects of Sally in Pensacola, Florida.
Now, as a tropical storm, the cyclone leaves heavy rain, winds and a dangerous storm surge in the area.
(Credit: Joe Raedle / Getty Images)
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People cross a street flooded by Sally in Pensacola, Florida, on September 16, 2020 (Credit: CHANDAN KHANNA / AFP via Getty Images)
Sally threatens Georgia and the Carolinas
Sally had weakened to a tropical depression Wednesday night.
Its remnants dumped large amounts of rain in parts of Georgia and the Carolinas on Thursday, causing flooding in some areas.
Flash flood warnings were in effect intermittently Thursday for parts of Georgia and central South Carolina, and flood warnings were issued for large sections of the Southeast.
Flash flooding and river flooding are likely in many of these areas, forecasters said.
Trees and power lines were overturned as persistent rain saturated the ground at various locations in the Atlanta area on Wednesday and Thursday, CNN affiliates WGCL and WSB reported.
In the Atlanta suburb of Dunwoody, a large tree fell on two vehicles Thursday, blocking an intersection but not injuring anyone, police said.
TREE DOWN ALERT at the intersection of Mt Vernon Rd and Chamblee Dunwoody Rd. Massive tree fell on two vehicles with wires down thankfully no injuries.
All directions of travel affected.
Expect major delays.
#ATLtraffic pic.twitter.com/U7goInWWae
- Dunwoody Police (@DunwoodyPolice) September 17, 2020
Central Georgia could receive 6 to 12 inches of rain by the end of the storm.
Central and northern South Carolina could be 8 to 25 cm, and parts of North Carolina and southeastern Virginia could receive 10 to 20 cm, the National Hurricane Center said.
More than 31,000 customers were without power in Georgia as of Thursday afternoon, according to PowerOutage.us.
“We have already seen significant flooding in parts of Alabama from this rain band.
Please remember: turn around, don't drown, ”tweeted the National Weather Service in Atlanta.
A downed tree blocks a school bus and other vehicles in Anderson County, South Carolina, after Thursday morning rains.
Curfew in the Pensacola area for 3 nights
Florida's Escambia County, which includes Pensacola, asked residents to stay home so crews can assess roads and bridges.
Local police will enforce the curfew from dusk to dawn for three nights starting Wednesday.
"We are still on a lifesaving assessment and recovery mission, and we need to be able to do that job," said County Commissioner Robert Bender.
"We are still evaluating our roads and bridges to make sure they are safe," he explained.
Crews rescued 377 people near the state line with Alabama and feared many more could be in danger in the coming days, said Jason Rogers, the county's director of public safety.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said Wednesday that the danger is far from over, warning that "virtually any body of water in Northwest Florida" could see levels rise in the coming days because of Sally.
"There will be a lot of property damage," he added.
"When you see downtown Pensacola, you see 1 meter of water there, that will probably affect all the businesses in downtown Pensacola, there is no question," he said.
Alabama asked the population to remain vigilant
A boat is washed up near a highway after Hurricane Sally hits Orange Beach, Alabama.
The National Guard rescued at least 35 people in Alabama as of Thursday morning, officials said at a news conference that included Gov. Kay Ivey.
In Gulf Shores, near where the hurricane made landfall, Doris Stiers assessed the damage outside her beach home.
I was stunned.
"It looks like a war zone," he told CNN on Wednesday.
'Much destruction, houses destroyed, roofs missing.
I have not had any service, electricity or internet.
Bad night, "he said.
Wilson, an Orange Beach resident who weathered the storm at his home, said the situation was terrifying.
«In our house the windows were broken (…) and the whole house was shaking like a boat in water.
It was scary, man, really, "Wilson told WPMI.
“Our dock is obviously gone.
Everything that was on the ground floor has disappeared, "he said.
Alabama officials warned that even if the storm has weakened, residents should not lower their guard.
"The storm may have come out of our local area, but it is important to remain vigilant as many areas are still affected by persistent floodwaters," tweeted the National Weather Service in Mobile.
CNN's Faith Karimi, Nicole Chavez, Tina Burnside, Michelle Krupa, Rosa Flores, and Ed Lavandera contributed to this report.
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