After a day of powerful gusts, some of the fiercest winds of the storm, and sheets of rain started hitting the state's Atlantic coast Saturday night.

Florida Governor Jeb Bush pointed out the furious storm would not only affect the east coast, but could cross over to western Florida, which is still mopping up from the death and devastation wrought by Hurricane Charley last month.

As the hurricane made landfall, the other end of the storm was still over the Bahamas, where several islands suffered severe flooding after days of driving rain.

Two people in the chain of Atlantic islands were reported killed by the slow-moving but huge hurricane that packed winds of 165 kilometers (105 miles) per hour.

Governor Bush warned that the storm "will do damage to a whole lot of places.

Meanwhile, President George W. Bush declared "a major disaster" in Florida in a move residents of Brevard, Indian River, Martin, Palm Beach and St. Lucie counties eligible to federal aid to rebuild after the storm.

Before the full fury of Frances even hit the coast, wind gusts of about 150 kilometers (90 miles) per hour uprooted trees, sent palm fronds flying onto highways, tossed shingles off roofs and downed power lines.

Local television said as many as two million people were left without electricity.

The winds started to move inland, where some areas were placed under a hurricane warning, while forecasters said isolated tornadoes could hit central Florida.

Authorities issued a curfew in several areas, including St Lucie county, which was slammed the hardest.

In Miami-Dade county, Mayor Alex Penelas declared a state of emergency and said any employer forcing staff to work could face charges of criminal negligence.

Late Saturday, he ordered police off the roads to ensure their safety and warned that anyone foolish enough to venture out during the storm could not expect immediate assistance if in trouble.

But workers did rush to the scene where a burst gas main caused a small fire.

Flooding was a major worry, with some areas expected to get about 50 centimeters (20 inches) of rain and coastal storm surge of up to two meters (six feet).

At 8:00 pm Saturday (0000 GMT), the eye of Frances was 80 kilometersmiles) east-northeast of Palm Beach, Florida.

Thousands of people, including tourists, packed emergency shelters and many others sought refuge with family, friends or at hotels after authorities ordered 2.5 million people to evacuate their homes in coastal areas.

Governor Bush urged Floridians not to rush out as soon as the wind lets down.

"As we all know, some of the loss of life occurs after the storm. There'll be a lot of rain, a lot of utility lines down, a lot of power lines in that water," he said.

He also warned that the relatively calm eye of the storm will be followed by the powerful tail of the hurricane.

Because the storm is so huge it could take hours for the eye to pass over the coastal area.

Hurricane-force winds extended 120 kilometers (75 miles) from the center of Frances, while tropical storm-force winds reached 335 kilometers (205 miles) at the outer perimeter of the storm.

"It's a massive storm ... this could be a very significant flooding event," said Michael Brown, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Federal authorities prepared to deploy emergency supplies and personnel, including urban search and rescue, medical and veterinary assistance teams, and generators.

"Facilities are being staged right now to bring a million meals a day to Floridians. We have 600 trucks of water, 237 trucks of ice ... ready to go to the impacted areas," said Brown.