Personnel with multiple Massachusetts organizations were ready to work Friday after Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida overnight, bringing damaging wind and flooding rain to communities from the Gulf Coast to the Carolinas.

Helene came ashore as a category four storm with maximum sustained winds of 140 miles-per-hour. As the hurricane rumbled north into Georgia, it triggered flooding and knocked out power to nearly 4 million energy customers , according to the Associated Press.

At least five people died. Crews rescued residents from flooded homes throughout the night.

The Massachusetts Task Force 1 deployed to North Carolina early Thursday morning and was scheduled to arrive in the state near 6 p.m.

With all eyes in North Carolina on the Appalachian Mountains and the risk for significant flooding, a task force spokesperson on Friday shared a photo of personnel preparing two inflatable boats.

The Massachusetts Task Force 1 is part of a FEMA network of similar organizations focused on urban search and rescue operations. The task force includes local firefighters, technical rescue technicians, medical professionals, canine handlers, engineers, and civilians, according to its website.

The Duxbury Fire Department in a post on Instagram said Fire Captain Alex Merry and Firefighter/Paramedic Brett Lowder were part of the team that deployed ahead of Helene.

“We extend our best wishes for their safety and success in these vital missions,” the fire department said.

Beyond Task Force 1, the Massachusetts arm of the American Red Cross said more than a dozen trained disaster workers from Massachusetts joined a wave of colleagues mobilizing to Florida and surrounding states.

Among tasks, the Red Cross in a post on Facebook on Wednesday said workers stocked supplies to help open shelters across the region for people in need.

By 10 p.m. Thursday night, shortly before Helene’s landfall, the Red Cross said crews had also prepositioned trailers with relief items, and prepared nearly 45,000 snacks and meals to distribute in areas “once it is safe to do so.”

Helene weakened after landfall. As of around 10 a.m. Friday, though, it was still a tropical storm with maximum sustained winds of 60 miles-per-hour and gusts nearing 90 miles-per-hour. The center of the storm was passing over western South Carolina and western North Carolina, still spilling rain across the region.

The National Weather Service had a large swath of flash flood warnings in place spanning communities from southern Virginia to northern Georgia. Several tornado warnings were in place within North Carolina.

As it continues to weaken, Helene is expected to slow its forward movement and eventually dissipate over Tennessee and Kentucky.

Stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest updates on Hurricane Helene.