One person has died in the US state of Georgia, as Hurricane Idalia made landfall on Wednesday.

The man was trying to clear a tree from a road in Valdosta, Georgia, when another tree fell on him, said the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Department. Two others, including a sheriff’s deputy, were injured.

No hurricane-related deaths have been confirmed in Florida, where the storm first made landfall, but Florida Governer Ron DeSantis stressed “that very well may change”.

The storm hit the Florida coast on Wednesday morning as a Category 3 hurricane, with winds nearing 125mph. As the day wore on it crossed into Georgia at 90mph, before weakening into a tropical storm overnight with winds of 60mph.

Mass evacuations were ordered earlier this week for thousands of Floridians, though many defied authorities and hunkered down.

John Kallschmidt (76) from Perry, a small town in Idalia’s path said “It got pretty scare, but it’s life in Florida, you get accustomed to this kind of thing.”

The US National Weather Service said that the storm spawned a tornado that briefly touched down in South Carolina, where two people suffered minor injuries.

High winds shredded signs, blew off roofs, sent sheet metal flying and snapped tall trees.

Florida had feared the worst while still recovering from last year’s Hurricane Ian, which left 149 dead.

However, Idalia blew into a more lightly inhabited area far from large population centres, along the state’s “nature coast”.

This is the first major hurricane to pass through the region said the National Weather Service.

Officials in Florida say that rescue crews are in search-and-recovery mode, looking for anyone in distress.

Officials in Bermuda have warned that the storm could hit the island as a tropical storm early next week. The island has already been hit by the outer bands of the Category 2 Hurricane Franklin earlier this week.

Additional reporting from AFP