Hermine gains strength as storm moves north

Beachgoers walk away from big waves and rough surf caused by Hermine on Sept. 4, 2016, in Bradley Beach, N.J. No swimming was allowed because of the passing storm.

Beachgoers watch waves caused by the passing of storm system Hermine on Sept. 4, 2016, in Ocean Grove, N.J.

A beachgoer stands at the edge of the water Sunday in Bridgehampton, N.Y., on the southeastern shore of Long Island, where the effects of storm system Hermine could be seen in the rough surf. Hermine spun away from the eastern coastline, removing the threat of heavy rain but maintaining enough power to churn dangerous waves and currents and keep beaches off-limits to disappointed swimmers and surfers during the holiday weekend.

Cormac Worrall, 6, left, helps his father remove tree debris from their yard in Virginia Beach, Va., on Sept. 4, 2016.

Chloe Riffle, 7, is surrounded by water on Sept. 4, 2016, in the Ocean View section of Norfolk, Va.

High winds from Tropical Storm Hermine whip up waves on Sept. 4, 2016 in Atlantic City as the storm heads north. Hermine made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane but weakened and was once again classified as a tropical storm.

A Duke Energy lineman in a bucket truck in Raleigh throws a length of coiled rope attached to a replacement power line over downed trees. His co-workers will pull a new power line over to the power pole in the foreground. Hermine caused two deaths, damaged properties and left hundreds of thousands without electricity from Florida to Virginia. It spawned a tornado in North Carolina and closed beaches as far north as New York.

Items that can be blown or damaged in high winds were removed from the beach stage in Atlantic City on Sept. 3, 2016. The approach of Hermine forced weekend beach concerts to be canceled.

Bicyclists on Waterfront Park pass by the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Truxtun as the ship heads to safe harbor at the Fort Trumbull Pier in New London, Conn., on Sept. 3, 2016, in advance of Hermine. The Truxtun had been on routine operations in the Atlantic Ocean when it was ordered to port until the storm passed.

Gov. Rick Scott, left, surveys Hurricane Hermine damage with Franklin County Commissioner William Massey, center, and Florida National Guard Maj. Gen. Michael Calhoun in the Alligator Point community of Franklin County, Fla. on Sept. 3, 2016.

Near a warning sign to keep off the rocks, people take photos along Rudee Inlet in Virginia Beach, Va., as the remnants of Hermine affect the coastline.

Brothers Joshua, 14, and Theodore Hensley, 12, of Taneytown, Md., watch the surf pound the new bulkheads of the bay entrance at the end of Atlantic Avenue in the South Inlet area of Atlantic City. The approach of Tropical Storm Hermine forced weekend beach concerts to be canceled.

High winds tipped over an 18-wheeler in Columbia, N.C., killing its driver and shutting down the U.S. 64 bridge during Tropical Storm Hermine,.according to Tyrrell County Sheriff Darryl Liverman

Max Klemm and Andrea Anion-Deblois from Cannon City, Colo., walk down Highway 12 in Avon, N.C., as the highway starts to flood and the winds blow around 45 mph Saturday afternoon. The couple were in town on vacation to celebrate their plans to be married Sept. 6 and came out to wait for friends in the flooded island as Hermine gained strength moving northward.

Ocean City Beach Patrol officers try to keep everyone safe during Tropical Storm Hermine over Labor Day weekend.

Water from Roanoke Sound pounds the Virginia Dare Trail in Manteo, N.C., on Sept. 3, 2016, as Tropical Storm Hermine passes the Outer Banks. Hermine lost hurricane strength over land but was intensifying Saturday along the Atlantic coast, threatening heavy rain, wind and storm surges on its northward march.

Children play on J. Seward Johnson'’s sculpture "The Awakening" along the Potomac River waterfront at National Harbor, Md., as Tropical Storm Hermine moves off the Atlantic coast.

Cape Charles Police Department's Tom Potts walks back to his vehicle after checking out the fishing pier at Cape Charles, Va..

Eva Caro uses her hand to shield her face from blowing sand and rain at the beach at Cape Charles, Va.

Two trailers sit overturned in the creek behind the Hatteras Sands Campground in Hatteras, N.C., after Tropical Storm Hermine passed the Outer Banks.

Eli White covers his face from the blowing sand in Nags Head, N.C., as the tail of Tropical Storm Hermine passes the Outer Banks. Hermine lost hurricane strength over land but was intensifying Saturday along the Atlantic coast, threatening heavy rain, wind and storm surges on its northward march.

An unidentified man watches the rising water from his home in Hatteras, N.C., after Tropical Storm Hermine passed the Outer Banks.

Authorities check on construction material dangling in Virginia Beach, Va., during Tropical Storm Hermine.

Pound net fisherman Brian Wilson bails water from one of his boats docked as Tropical Storm Hermine approaches Virginia Beach, Va.

Cars drive on the flooded North Carolina Highway 12 in Rodanthe, N.C., after Tropical Storm Hermine passed the Outer Banks. The storm was expected to dump several inches of rain in parts of coastal Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey and New York as the Labor Day weekend got underway.

Chris Boland, whose home was spared a direct hit from a fallen pine tree, looks over the aftermath of Tropical Storm Hermine as he waits for power to be restored on Sept. 2, 2016, in Valdosta. Ga.

A dock damaged by the landfall of Hurricane Hermine is seen, Friday, in the aftermath of the storm.

A tree service company removes a fallen tree, Friday, from the roof of a damaged home in Valdosta. Ga., in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Hermine.

Debris can be seen through th broken door of Roy's Restaurant, Friday, caused by Hurricane Hermine after landfall of the storm.

ServPro employees remove damaged furniture at Roy's Restaurant in Steinhatchee, Fla.

Paige Pilkinton (left) and Lindsey Applegate (right) are wind blown while checking out the arrival of Hurricane Hermine on a pier in downtown Charleston, S.C..

A woman walks past pleasure boats that were washed into Riverside Dr., when Hurricane Hermine came ashore early Sept. 2, 2016, in Steinhatchee, Fla. Hermine was downgraded to a tropical storm after it made landfall, as it moves over Georgia, but the U.S. National Hurricane Center says winds are increasing along the Southeast coast and flooding rains continue.

People venture out onto the Jacksonville Beach Fishing Pier as waves crash against the pilings, Sept. 2, 2016, in Fla. Hurricane Hermine was downgraded to a tropical storm after making landfall on the gulf coast of Florida.

Karen Stephenson cleans the water out of a real estate office after hurricane Hermine passed through Cedar Key, Fla.

Residents look at Alligator Point road that collapsed during the storm surge from Hurricane Hermine at Alligator Point, Fla. on Sept. 2, 2016.

Brothers Trey Bowers,10 and Tyler Bowers,12, are splashed with salt water from a crashing wave from Tropical Storm Hermine on Sept. 2, 2016, in Charleston, S.C.

A man backs his Jeep up after trying to pass though floodwaters from Hurricane Hermine on Sept. 2, 2016, in Steinhatchee, Fla.

Debris is removed from streets in the aftermath of Hurricane Hermine.

A resident points back to his home as he speaks with law enforcement officers using an airboat to survey damage around homes from high winds and storm surge associated with Hurricane Hermine.

Tom Reams looks over damage from a tree on top of his 15-year-old daughter's Volkswagen Beetle and house caused by the wind and storm surge from Hurricane Hermine at Alligator Point, Fla. on Sept. 2, 2016.

A woman walks her dog along the waterfront after Hurricane Hermine passed through Cedar Key, FL. The pile of debris in the foreground is from the storm surge. Hurricane Hermine weakened to a tropical storm Friday as it moved farther inland after making landfall on Florida's Gulf Coast

A resident checks on damage after Hurricane Hermine passed through Cedar Key, Fl.

Michael Daniels and Ashley Kemp look over a pair of sailboats that broke free from their anchors and washed ashore from Hurricane Hermine on Sept. 2, 2016, in Carabelle, Fla. Hermine was downgraded to a tropical storm after it made landfall, as it moves over Georgia, but the U.S. National Hurricane Center says winds are increasing along the Southeast coast and flooding rains continue.

Lynne Garrett speaks to loved ones on the phone as she surveys damage outside of her home in Tampa, Fla.

Residents survey damage from the winds and storm surge associated with Hurricane Hermine which made landfall overnight in the area on September 2, 2016, in Tampa, Fla.

Flood waters, which filled the streets in St. Marks Friday morning begins to recede in the hours after Hurricane Hermine passed through.

Bo Lynne's Grocery store rests partially underwater in St. Marks, Fla. Friday morning in the hours after Hurricane Hermine passed through. Waters overnight rose to a few feet within the store.

A US flag is bent by the wind as the eye of Hurricane Hermine passes overhead in the early morning hours on September 2, 2016 in Shell Point Beach, Florida.

A metal roof lies in the road as the eye of Hurricane Hermine passes overhead in the early morning hours on September 2, 2016 in Shell Point Beach, Florida.

Certified nurse assistant Jennifer Smith rides out Hurricane Hermine inside the Hosford County Search and Rescue station doubling as a shelter for local residents as the storm makes land fall on Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016, in Hosford, Fla.

A young man and his dog wades in the storm surge from Hurricane Hermaine outside Cooter Stew Cafe on September 1, 2016 in Saint Marks, Florida.

Rain waters flood a roadway as Hurricane Hermine makes landfall in west Cedar Key, Fla. on Thursday evening.

The Gulf of Mexico waters begin to go overtop of a roadway as Hurricane Hermine makes landfall in west Cedar Key, Fla. on Thursday evening.

David Stuart floats across the street in St. Marks, Fla. where flooding has started ahead of Hurricane Hermine.

A few residents resist the mandatory emergency evacuation ahead of Hurricane Hermine in St. Marks, Fla.

Brothers Bill Danzey, left, and Bob work to cover windows and doors of Bill's son's house with plywood in preparation for hurricane Hermine in Panacea, Fla.

Residents try to navigate a flooded street in Cedar Key, Fla.

Pedro Muacaj rests on high ground in front of a gift shop along a flooded section of Dodecanese Blvd. in Tarpon Springs, Fla. where he was working. The street, which typically floods during heavy reins, was filling quickly at high tide as Tropical Storm Hermine strengthened in the Gulf of Mexico.

Power crews with Pike Electric in South Carolina arrive on the Florida Gulf coast as Hurricane Hermine approaches on in Carrabelle, Fla.

Traffic drives along US 98 as Hurricane Hermine approaches in Eastpoint, Fla.

Residents leave Alligator Point, Fla. on the Gulf Coast as winds and rain pick up ahead of Hurricane Hermine.

The water from the Gulf of Mexico breaks over the seawall in Cedar Key, Fla.

A bar in Cedar Key, Fla. is boarded up awaiting Hurricane Hermine.

This NASA-NOAA GOES East satellite photo taken Aug. 31, 2016, shows Tropical Storm Hermine in the Gulf of Mexico. As of 2 p.m. ET Aug. 31, NOAA's National Hurricane Center upgraded Depression Nine to Tropical Storm Hermine. Located about 540 miles west of Miami, Hermine's maximum sustained winds have increased to near 40 miles per hour with higher gusts. According to the National Hurricane Center, additional strengthening is forecast during the next day or two, and the storm could be near hurricane strength by the time landfall occurs. Hermine is expected to make landfall in Florida's "Big Bend" area Sept. 1, with the center of the storm expected to come ashore later that night. The combination of a dangerous storm surge and the tide will cause normally dry areas near the coast to be flooded by rising waters moving inland from the shoreline. There is a danger of life-threatening inundation within the next 36 to 48 hours along the Gulf coast of Florida from Aripeka to Indian Pass.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott, center, talks about Tropical Storm Hermine after a briefing at the Alachua County Emergency Operations Center on Aug. 31, 2016, in Gainesville, Fla.

Jerry Boyd, left, and Tommy Neal unload sandbags that will be used to shore up doorways at a restaurant as they prepare for Tropical Storm Hermine on Aug. 31, 2016, in Cedar Key, Fla.

Lisa Bolton holds her 3-year-old daughter Lois Bolton, both of Manchester, England, during a visit Aug. 31, 2016, to Clearwater Beach, Fla. The National Hurricane Center in Miami says Tropical Storm Hermine is gaining strength as it rumbles toward Florida's Gulf Coast.

Ariel Callahan, 5, left, and her grandmother Kelly Smith, navigate rainwater at Anona Elementary School in Largo, Fla.

Andre Anton stops from gathering his families belongings as the rain continues pour inside of his home after a large tree crashed through the roof Aug. 31, 2016, in Tampa.

Workers move sandbags to protect a restaurant in preparation for Tropical Storm Hermine on Aug. 31, 2016, in Cedar Key, Fla.

Workers install flashing around the roof and windows of restaurant in preparation of Tropical Storm Hermine on Aug. 31, 2016, in Cedar Key, Fla.

Lifeguard Macy Scott keeps an eye over the beach, from under the red high hazard flag, at the lifeguard station Aug. 31, 2016, in Jacksonville Beach, Fla.

Lynn Scott and Ralph Gibson hug under the red high hazard flag, on one of the dune crossovers, as dark clouds from a storm hang over the ocean Aug. 31, 2016, in Jacksonville Beach, Fla.

Dale Barstow pulls his boat from the water ahead of tropical storm Hermine in the Shell Point community near St. Marks, Fla.