Rescuers searched devastated communities for the dead and injured and thousands of people were homeless on Saturday after Hurricane Charley shredded mobile home parks and damaged tens of thousands of buildings in southwest Florida. "Our worst fears have come true," said Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, adding it was hard to describe seeing "entire communities totally flattened." Charley, carrying winds of 145 mph (233 kph) and the strongest hurricane to hit the state in 12 years, roared over on Friday afternoon, striking with more ferocity and further south than initially forecast and taking many in the area by surprise. It churned northeast through the state and by Saturday afternoon it was lashing the Carolinas, but as a weaker tropical storm. State emergency officials said there were five confirmed killed in the storm, which caused widespread destruction where it first punched in around Punta Gorda, Port Charlotte and Fort Myers. But the toll appeared likely to rise. --MORE 2232 Local Time 1932 GMT
