Tropical Storm Hanna has drawn closer to the Carolina coastline after killing at least 136 people in Haiti.

Hanna is unlikely to be more than a minimal Category 1 hurricane when it reaches the East Coast early on Saturday, the US National Hurricane Centre has said.

However, authorities in North Carolina declared a state of emergency and ordered up a voluntary evacuation on the fragile Outer Banks and coastal camping grounds.

Meanwhile, nervous Florida residents are preparing for Hurricane Ike which could be far more threatening despite having been downgraded overnight from an extremely dangerous Category 4 hurricane to a Category 3.

It is now around 460 miles north of the Leeward Islands of the Caribbean, but days away from reaching land so some further weakening is possible.

Florida's Governor Charlie Crist said: "Every Floridian and visitor needs to be prepared to act in the event that local officials recommend evacuations or protective action."

He added: "Make sure you have a NOAA weatherband radio and extra batteries. Make sure you have a hurricane kit that includes a supply of non-perishable food.

"Ike is the fourth storm we have faced in less than a month. And we are still in the peak of what could become one of our most active tropical seasons."

Elsewhere, at least 136 people have died in floods and mudslides triggered by Hanna in Haiti.

Most survivors have eaten nothing for days since Hanna's torrential rains submerged Gonaives under two metres (6.5 feet) of water.

"I lost everything in the flooding. All I own is what I wear," said Gerta Meus, cradling her naked two-year-old daughter.

Many in Gonaives survived by scrambling onto rooftops as the water rose, then waded through the mud to a shelter in the port city after it receded.

Jacqueline Meranvil, 21, said her younger sister and herself climbed first onto the top of a fence and from there onto their roof, "but my mother who is 60 could not climb and we couldn't help her so she died."

Another survivor, Widline Jean-Louis, said: "The water entered my house and some people helped us get on top of the roof but when my husband was coming to join us he tried to climb on top of the roof and fell and he was taken away by the water before our eyes."

She added: "My daughter is very sick and nobody's there to help me."

Bridges and roads have been washed out, making it difficult for aid to reach the coastal city.

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