A residents tells the BBC her family had to swim out of home as floodwaters from Helene rose to their shoulders.

Hurricane Helene crashed onto the Florida coast near Perry in Taylor County as a Category 4 hurricane with winds up to 140 mph. Here's what to know.

However, much of Florida, including the Tampa Bay region, continued to be under a storm surge warning early Friday morning. That means officials continued to project potentially life-threatening flooding. The worst of the storm is now headed for Georgia.