At least 20 people have lost their lives in the Bahamas as a result of Hurricane Dorian, and officials say that figure will likely increase further.

As the storm moved along the coast of Georgia and officials in South Carolina urged residents to heed evacuation orders, officials in the Bahamas revealed the deadly harm inflicted by the powerful storm that sat upon the islands with 185 mph winds for more than 36 hours.

Earlier on Wednesday, the nation’s prime minister, Hubert Minnis, said the government had recorded seven deaths, but said this would likely increase.

“We are in the midst of one of the greatest national crises in our country’s history,” he told a news conference. “No effort or resources will be held back.

He added: “We can expect more deaths to be recorded. This is just preliminary information.”

"Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Show all 15 1 /15 "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures A road is flooded during the passing of Hurricane Dorian in Freeport, Grand Bahama. AP "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Hurricane Dorian's eye taken by Nasa astronaut Nick Hague, from aboard the International Space Station. The station orbits more than 200 miles above the Earth. Hurricane Dorian, which made landfall on the Bahamas as category 5 and now reclassified as category 4, is expected to continue on its projected path towards the Florida coast. Nasa/EPA "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Buildings damaged by Hurricane Dorian are swept by deep floodwater in the Abaco Islands in The Bahamas. Latrae Rahming "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Tropical Storm Dorian as it approached the Bahamas. NOAA/AFP/Getty "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Strong winds blow the tops of trees while whisking up water from the surface of a canal that leads to the sea in Freeport, Grand Bahama AP "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures A woman walks in a flooded street after the effects of Hurricane Dorian arrived in Nassau, Bahamas. REUTERS "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Uprooted trees, fallen power lines and debris scatter a road as Hurricane Dorian sweeps through Marsh Harbour in The Bahamas Ramond A King via Reuters "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Buildings damaged by Hurricane Dorian are swept by deep floodwater in the Abaco Islands in The Bahamas Latrae Rahming "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures A building is strewn with debris after its roof was torn off by Hurricane Dorian in the Abaco Islands in The Bahamas Latrae Rahming "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Uprooted trees, fallen power lines and debris scatter a road as Hurricane Dorian sweeps through Marsh Harbour in The Bahamas Ramond A King via Reuters "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Hurricane Dorian is pictured from a plane flying inside the eye of the storm Garrett Black/US Air Force "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Inmates from a Florida jail fill sandbags to hand out to residents ahead of Hurricane Dorian in Cocoa, Florida on September 1 EPA "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Residents stock up at Wal-Mart in preparation for Hurricane Dorian in Orlando, Florida Getty "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures A shop is boarded-up ahead of Hurricane Dorian in Cocoa, Florida on September 1 Reuters "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Waves batter a pier in Marsh Harbour in The Bahamas on September 1e Mark Hall vie Reuters

Subsequently, the Washington Post quoted health minister Duane Sands, as saying the figure had risen to 20 and was expected to continue to increase as emergency teams were able to reach various parts of the island nation.

He said, 17 dead were reported in the Abacos and three were reported in Grand Bahama.

CNN said the National Hurricane Centre’s forecast continued to show the dangerous core of Dorian approaching the coast of South Carolina some time on Thursday morning near Charleston, and then travelling along the coast through the Carolinas on Friday.

Donald Trump shows off map purporting to support false claim that Hurricane Dorian was heading for Alabama

Landfall could occur on Friday anywhere in the Carolinas. The NHC warned “it should be noted that the track is close to and almost parallel to the coast of the southeastern United States, and any deviation to the left of the track could bring the centre onshore anywhere in the Carolinas”.

Mark Lowcock, United Nations under-secretary general for humanitarian affairs, said in a conference call with reporters that he expected the death toll in the Bahamas to rise significantly.

Dozens of people in the Bahamas took to Facebook to search for missing loved ones, and aid agencies estimated that tens of thousands of people out of the Bahamas population of 400,000 would need food and other support.

Aerial video of Great Abaco Island showed miles of flooded neighbourhoods littered with upturned boats and shipping containers scattered like toys. Many buildings had walls or roofs partly ripped off.

South Carolina governor Henry McMaster urged people to heed a coastal evacuation order as Dorian neared the state’s seaboard.

“We want everyone to leave who can,” Mr McMaster said. “We know there are some who can’t or some who don’t want to for various reasons. But we’re urging people to be safe, rather than sorry.”