Saints Marks witnessed minor flooding on Tuesday, which forced some roads to shut down. This included the only road that leads into and out of the town, which was blocked off ahead of the hurricane.
Businesses did their best to prepare for the storm by moving furniture. In 2005, the area fell victim to Hurricane Dennis, a Category 3 storm that killed 88 people.
By Wednesday, Saint Marks had been ravaged by flooding, with entire neighborhoods submerged in water.
The hurricane made landfall just west of Panama City, which has been completely wiped out by the storm. Residents have been forced to evacuate, beachfront condos have been stripped of their roofs, and schools and hospitals have been torn apart.
"It's hard to convey in words the scale of the catastrophe in Panama City," one storm chaser tweeted. "The whole city looks like a nuke was dropped on it."
Officials have instructed evacuees not to return to the city, which is still without power and phone service.
Like Saint Marks, Crawfordville residents saw their roads blocked off on Tuesday ahead of the storm. Many of the area's coastal homes are weak or mobile structures, making them particularly vulnerable in a hurricane.
The surrounding county, Wakulla, has kept a list of people who chose not to evacuate. The sheriff's office planned to check on them on Thursday.
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