Hurricane Irma leaves path of destruction

Justin Hand navigates storm surge flood waters from Hurricane Irma along the St. Johns River on Sept. 11, 2017 in Jacksonville, Florida. Flooding in downtown Jacksonville along the river topped a record set during Hurricane Dora in 1965. AFP PHOTO /Sean Rayford

Irma, the monster storm which first pummeled the Caribbean before hammering Florida has been downgraded to a tropical storm, but forecasters warned of "life-threatening" storm surges, heavy winds and risk of tornadoes.

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'Devastation' in Florida Keys, Irma weakens

AFP – Millions of Florida residents were without power and extensive damage was reported in the Florida Keys but most of the Sunshine State appeared Monday to have dodged forecasts of catastrophic damage from Hurricane Irma.

As of 10:25am our time this morning, a much-weakend Irma had left Florida but its winds and rains were still pounding a wide area from South Carolina to Tennessee. Weather Channel

While Florida may have escaped the worst from the monster storm which first pummeled the Caribbean, the death toll jumped to at least 40 as Cuba said 10 people had been killed there over the weekend as Irma spun northward.

And in the Caribbean, as hard-hit residents struggled to get back on their feet, Britain, France, the Netherlands and the United States ramped up relief efforts for their overseas territories.

Florida residents who spent an anxious night huddled indoors were venturing out to survey the damage, which did not seem to be as bad as initially feared.

Lourdes Rivera loads a few buckets to collect water in front of her house that was destroyed by Hurricane Irma, in Isabela de Sagua, Cuba, Monday, Sept. 11, 2017. Cuban state media reported several deaths despite the country's usually rigorous disaster preparations. More than 1 million were evacuated from flood-prone areas. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

More than 6.5 million customers in Florida were without power, however, and Governor Rick Scott said the chain of southern islands known as the Florida Keys had suffered a lot of damage.

"There's devastation," Scott said after flying over the Keys with the Coast Guard. "I just hope everybody survived. It's horrible what we saw."

As residents began to check out their homes, authorities warned of downed power lines, raw sewage in floodwaters and – this being Florida – displaced wildlife like snakes and alligators.

"Don't think just because this has passed you can run home," Governor Scott said. "We have downed power lines all across the state.

"We have roads that are impassable," he said. "We have debris all over the state."

Damaged houses are shown in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma, Monday, Sept. 11, 2017, in the Florida Keys. (Matt McClain/The Washington Post via AP, Pool)

Irma was downgraded to a tropical storm, but forecasters warned of "life-threatening" storm surges, heavy winds and risk of tornadoes.

Florida's northeastern city of Jacksonville, population 880,000, ordered urgent evacuations amid record flooding along the St Johns River.

Flooding was also reported in the city of Charleston, South Carolina, and the National Hurricane Center warned of possible isolated tornadoes in the state.

Irma's maximum sustained winds had decreased to 72 kilometers per hour as of 8:00 pm local time. Irma's eye was in western Georgia, and expected to cross into eastern Alabama on Tuesday.

Irma had triggered orders for more than six million people in the United States to flee to safety, one of the biggest evacuations in the country's history.