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At least four people have died, more than 500,000 homes and businesses are without power, two piers have been seriously damaged and flooding has become a deadly threat, but the center of Hurricane Irene finally has moved out of North Carolina.

In Goldsboro, a 15-year-old girl died when her father's car hit another at an Ash Street intersection where a power outage knocked out traffic signals. Four other children were ejected from the car and taken to Wayne Memorial Hospital. Also, in Goldsboro, the roof of the 911 operations center and Berkeley Mall, which was closed, were ripped away.

Soundside flooding is severe on the northern Outer Banks. Nags Head has been cut off from Manteo as N.C. 12 is impassable in many areas, especially around Sunset Grill and Sanderling. Click here to see raw video of the Avalon pier battered by surf as the storm raked the Outer Banks.

Dozens of families were trapped in Pamlico County near Oriental as flood water pushed 2 feet higher than its crest during Hurricane Isabel in 2003. The National Guard was trying to free people using high-water vehicles, and swift-water rescue teams were on the way. Spotty communications and high wind hampered their efforts. "Phones come and go, cell phones come and go, the Internet comes and goes," said Emergency Management Director David Spruill. "It all depends on how you hold your head."

Dawn-to-dusk curfews are in effect in several Tar Heel municipalities, including New Bern, Greenville, Goldsboro, Edenton, Washington, Ayden, Farmville, Duck, Kill Devil Hills and Kinston.

Emergency officials in Beaufort County said they think a tornado touched down near Belhaven. Nearby in Washington, a man was rescued in waist-deep water after the walls of his mobile home collapsed, said Jim Chrisman, interim county manager.

A second tornado touched down early today in Tyrrell County, destroying several homes. Winds were still too strong in the afternoon to get a complete count, but Emergency Management Director Wesley Hawkins said two or three people with minor injuries were evacuated. Flood waters from the Scuppernong River threatened downtown Columbia.

"It's about to sever the town in half," he said.

Flooding is severe around the southern sounds, and some of the worst is in New Bern, where the storm pushed water from the Pamlico Sound up the Neuse River and into the city of about 30,000.

In the Triangle, gusty winds and some rain have plagued parts of the area, particularly Wake and Johnston counties. More details are here.

The hurricane center reported that Irene's eye hit the lower tip of the Outer Banks near Cape Lookout at 7:30 a.m. with 85 mph winds, and its strength has remained remarkably consistent. At 11 p.m. the eye was off the coast of Virginia, and top sustained winds were 80 mph.

The storm was moving north-northeast at nearly 16 miles per hour and is expected to reach southern New England on Sunday.

Although Irene was downgraded to a Category 1 storm by the time it hit North Carolina after weakening from the Category 3 that roared through the Bahamas with 115-mph winds this week, it remains a force that is roiling the ocean, sounds and coastal rivers.