nbc's sara rosario is live with the latest. it looks like it's starting to rain there and residents are bracing for impact. >> reporter: yeah, that's right, janelle. hurricane warnings across central florida as matthew near'ses the u.s. coast. the wind is starting to pick up, rain, and this is the calm before the storm. by next -- by this time tomorrow, we are expecting conditions to worsen, which is local officials are telling people to prepare for what's to come. hurricane matthew slammed into haiti, leaving in its wake widespread destruction. the storm now taking aim at the bahamas and u.s. coastline from florida to north carolina. >> with the storm going up our coast, a small deviation from this track could mean a catastrophic change along florida's east coast. we have to prepare for a direct hit. >> reporter: in florida, the governor has ordered people to evacuate. in south carolina, bumper to bumper traffic lines the interstate out of charleston and surrounding areas. the rush on supplies and gasoline an indication those

. >> sara rosario joins us from daytona beach. >> sunrise and no slowdown in hurricane matthew's assault on the sunshine state. >> the storm has only passed half the state so this is not over. >> the eye is expected to move dangerously close to shore as the storm marchs northward high tide and raising the risk of storm surge. >> we are very concerned about storm surge and the worst effects are still likely to come. >> reporter: overnight hurricane matthew battered florida, the massive storm bringing damaging winds and drenching rain. the eye remains well offshore. at times wind gusts were so strong that first responders had to get themselves to safety. power lines ripped from the poles and thousands without power. and many are riding out the storm in shelters. hundreds of pets held with their owners. and hurricane matthew is forecasted to skirt the coast of georgia and south carolina into the weekend. and offshore doesn't mean any less dangerous. >> if you're in an area that's been told to evacuate and your authorities are telling you you >> millions still at risk as hurricane matthew ch

sara rosario reports from daytona beach with latest. hurricane matthew is lashing florida.. the eye hugging the coastline as it moves north.. bringing with it heavy rain, violent winds, and dangerous storm surge that could "we are very concerned about storm surge and the worst effects are still likely to come." this was seen on ormond beach as the ocean pushed inland. "oh my gosh guys we should hundreds of thousands are without power after matthew started its assault overnight. first light revealed south florida was largely spared major damage. while.. empty streets in daytona beach showed floridians heeded the warnings and got out now a category 3 with sustained winds of 120 miles per hour.. the storm is far from letting up as march up the coast. (sot / pres. obama) "we're still on the front end of back end so we don't know how bad the damage could end up." georgia and south carolina are now bracing for impact with landfall near charleston a real possibility. (sot / gov. nikki haley - (r) sc 1:04 - 1:09) "our barriers islands, it's the biggest concern right now. we hundred

sara rosario, back to you. >>> stay with us as we follow hurricane matthew. you can track it at any time on our website or by using our mobile apps. for a murder suspect or suspects. an elderly man was murdered in his own home. his wife, badly injured and rushed to the hospital. kimberly book pha+p/ has the latest. >>>reporter: the scene is cleared at the home behind me, but the investigation is hardly over for the victim's family. attacked in their home in a home invasion. 935 -year-old thomas hardy and 77 -year-old told until the next morning when a home health aide came b by. john hardy said despite his older brother's age, he was a healthy and active man who still worked as a salesman and was planing to lead a hike to the grand canyon next week. >> he was a mountain climber. he climbed every mountain in tphaoepbg/. >>>reporter: during the attack attacks, hardy died. his wife injured, but survived fisher's son said he is leaving it up to police to find the people responsible. >> obviously, they are cowards. i can't wait to meet them. >>>reporter: the distr

sara rosario. >> before matthew hit the u.s., it pummeled parts of the carribean, especially haiti, and. military personnel are in haiti now to help in the relief efforts from this monstrous storm. the haitian government officials death toll there stands at nearly 400. but some reports say it may actually be more than double that. many of the deaths in the southwestern coast, which suffered the full force of the hurricane. >>> the bay area is stepping in to help the people in the path of hurricane matthew. for many in silicon valley that goes for tech. we go to scott budman at san jose international with more. scott. >> reporter: good evening, jessica. you could call this tech support for hurricane victims, from the air and on the ground. the tech help starts in the air. where companies are working on drones to provide phone and wireless service to areas affected by natural disasters. >> so instead of the cell site being planted in the ground, which is -- our traditional way of doing business, we lifted that equipment up into the belly of this very small aircraft and placed it over the

sara rosario -- sarh rosario is there to bring us the latest. good evening what can you tell us. >> reporter: hurricane matthew heads north towards the carolinas and has sustained winds of more than 110 miles per hour as many in central florida are breathing a sigh of relief. finally getting a chance tostart assessing the damage here. but people along matthews path as it hest heads north are bracing for -- heads northbound are bracing for what's to come. florida hugging the coastline bringing heavy rain and violent winds and dangerous storm surge that could reach up to 11 feet. >> we are very concerned about storm surge. the worst effects are likely to come. >> reporter: this was seen on orman beach as the ocean pushed in. >> we should back away. >> i know. >> reporter: hundreds of thousands are without power aftermath yew started the assault overnight. first light revealed south florida with largely spared major damage streettold they heed warnings and got out of the way of the storm a category 3 with sustained wind of 120 miles per hour, the s