Hurricane Michael has proved to be tremendously devastating as it has become the fourth most powerful storm on record to attack the U.S., the worst since Hurricane Camille in 1969. This storm has also became the first category 4 hurricane to strike the Florida Panhandle, and according to Florida Governor Rick Scott, the “worst storm” that area has seen thus far. This history-making, record-breaking storm has impacted lives all across the southern half of the East Coast and claimed the lives of many residents in Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas.

All together there have been at least 17 deaths reported; however, some victims have not yet been identified. Among the victims are four citizens from the county of Gadsden in Florida. The exact circumstances surrounding the deaths of the half of these victims are not immediately clear. One victim, a man in Alford,  is said to have died after being struck by a tree during the storm. Another, according to Miami Fire Chief Joseph Zalrahban, was found in the rubble of Mexico Beach. In Georgia one girl, age 11, named Sarah Radley died of massive blunt force trauma as she was struck in the head by flying debris. A carport was picked up by the storm and dropped on the roof of a home, and one of the legs struck the girl in the head; her grandmother was also injured in the storm. In North Carolina a 38-year-old man died when a tree fell on his car while he was driving. A total of six storm-related deaths were reported in Virginia. One of these was the death of Lieutenant Brad Clark, a member of the Virginia Police Department.  

Hurricane Michael has left a large path of destruction ranging across the southeastern portion of the U.S. This is a storm that has affected the lives of many and will continue to be remembered for years to come.