12 dead, 1.27 mil. in dark after Hurricane Michael

NEW YORK. KAZINFORM At least 12 people have been killed and 1.27 million households have lost power as of Friday in the wake of Hurricane Michael, U.S. media reported.

Michael, one of the most powerful hurricanes in U.S. history, continues to cut a destructive path as a tropical storm, having weakened after lashing Georgia and North Carolina, KYODO NEWS reports.

It was a Category 4 storm on the five-step Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale when it made landfall in the Florida Panhandle on Wednesday.

A senior official of the Federal Emergency Management Agency said the number of casualties could rise further.