Hurricane Nicole hits Florida, weakens to tropical storm

Hurricane Nicole has weakened to a tropical storm after making landfall in the US state of Florida’s east coast, according to the National Weather Service.

The storm brought heavy rains and fierce winds, and came as some coastal areas were still reeling from the last major storm – Hurricane Ian – which hit six weeks ago.

As Nicole approached, a hurricane warning was posted for a 550km (240 miles) coastal stretch that included the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, where NASA’s new moon rocket stood exposed to the elements and anchored to its launch pad.

The storm officially made landfall at 3am local time and brought sustained winds of up to 120kmph (75mph) as it moved along the east coast of Florida north of Miami, the National Hurricane Center said.