Florida experienced the impact of Hurricane Idalia as it made landfall early Wednesday morning as a powerful Category 3 storm, resulting in widespread power outages across the state.
According to the National Hurricane Center, Hurricane Idalia brought maximum sustained winds of approximately 125 mph.
The storm surge and destructive winds were particularly severe in the Florida Big Bend region. Even though Idalia was expected to weaken after landfall, it was projected to maintain hurricane strength while moving across southern Georgia and the coast of Georgia or southern South Carolina later in the day.
Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency in 49 out of Florida’s 67 counties, spanning from the Gulf Coast to the Atlantic Coast. He urged residents in evacuation zones to take immediate action, emphasizing the urgency during a news conference on Tuesday night.
As of the 5 a.m. update from the National Weather Service, Hurricane Idalia was rapidly moving north-northeast at a speed of 18 mph. The storm had the potential to further intensify before reaching the coast later in the morning.
This storm was described by the National Weather Service as an “unprecedented event” due to the fact that no major hurricane of Category 3 or higher had previously struck the Big Bend’s Apalachee Bay area.
Reports from PowerOutage.Us indicated that more than 161,000 power outages had been reported in Florida, primarily along the Gulf Coast.
