Tropical storm Fay moved inland after making landfall on Florida's southwest coast, bringing heavy rains and strong winds, but not the hurricane that was predicted.
In Naples, Fla. the streets were largely deserted. There was flooding in areas and some debris, but no reports of storm surge damage.
Residents had taken precautions, buying supplies and closing businesses. Schools and government offices remained closed.
At 5 p.m. ET, the storm's centre was about 95 kilometres south-southwest of Melbourne, Fla., and was moving toward the north-northeast, with maximum winds approaching 100 km/h. It was expected to slow down and gradually weaken by the same time Wednesday.
"Florida's probably one of the best states in the world to deal with hurricanes, one thing they do is they always over-prepare, which is not a bad thing," CTV's Tom Clark told Canada AM from Fort Myers, Fla.
Florida has not seen any major hurricanes in the past two years, and officials were worried that complacency could cost lives as they urged people to take Fay seriously.
Officials did not, however, issue evacuation notices on the west coast of Florida, which Clark said "was a sign to everybody that they knew this was not going to be a disaster or a major hurricane."
Concerns over flooding remain for many low-lying areas as the slow moving storm is expected to drop a significant amount of rain.
The storm could also push tides to 1.4 metres above normal and cause tornadoes.
Florida Power & Light reported nearly 33,000 homes without power in South Florida, with the largest number in Collier County, where 12,500 were in the dark.
After crossing the Florida Keys without causing major damage, Fay lumbered ashore about 5 a.m. Tuesday at Cape Romano, just south of Naples, with sustained winds of about 96 km/h, well below the hurricane threshold of 119 km/h.
Evacuation orders affecting mobile home residents and others in vulnerable areas have been lifted in the Tampa Bay area, Pinellas, Pasco and Hillsborough counties.
'I think on this one they have dodged a bullet," Clark said. "However at this time of year, which is really the beginning of the active hurricane season down here, nobody takes anything for granted in terms of what a storm may have and hold for them."
With files from The Associated Press.
