Weather

Actions

Death Toll Rises To At Least 29 From Hurricane Michael

The majority of the reported deaths are from Florida, where the storm made landfall on Oct. 10.
Posted

The death toll from Hurricane Michael is still rising as rescuers continue to search through the wreckage in the storm's path.

Officials say Michael killed at least 29 people across the southeast U.S. coast, with the majority of those deaths occurring in Florida. 

Michael made landfall along the Florida Panhandle on Oct. 10 as a Category 4 hurricane — making it the most powerful storm to directly hit the continental U.S. since 1992's Hurricane Andrew. 

After making landfall, the storm cut across Georgia before moving over the Carolinas and up into Virginia, causing intense flooding along the way. Several of the reported deaths were from drowning

With phone service getting restored and volunteers out on the ground helping with recovery efforts, officials say it's difficult to know exactly how many people might still be considered missing. Though one volunteer rescue organization estimated more than 700 people were still unaccounted for just in Florida as of Tuesday afternoon.

Additional reporting from Newsy affiliate CNN