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At least seven people were killed in the Abaco Islands as Hurricane Dorian struck the Bahamas, wreaking destruction and devastation that left officials expecting the death toll to rise, BuzzFeed News reports.

"We are in the midst of a historic tragedy in parts of the northern Bahamas," the nation's prime minister, Hubert Minnis, said in a news conference Tuesday.

Minnis confirmed that seven people in Abaco had died as a result of the hurricane that has reportedly destroyed thousands of homes on the island. At least 21 people were injured and taken to hospitals, he said.

"The devastation is unprecedented and extensive," Minnis said.

Dorian made landfall in the Bahamas on Sunday as a Category 5 storm with 185 mph winds — the strongest hurricane to ever strike the country.

Dorian slammed the islands with storm surge 12 to 15 feet above normal tide levels "with higher destructive waves," according to the National Hurricane Center. After battering the Bahamas for two days, the hurricane was downgraded to a Category 2 storm early Tuesday.

Forecasters warned residents to remain in shelters as dangerous winds gusting up to 140 mph and extreme flooding were expected to continue over Grand Bahama for much of Tuesday. The unprecedented storm was expected to move toward Florida and the southeast coast on Wednesday.