Hurricane Idalia made landfall on Florida鈥檚 west coast as a dangerous Category 3 storm on Wednesday and was unleashing life-threatening storm surges and rainfall in an area not accustomed to such pummeling.
Idalia came ashore in , where the Florida Panhandle curves into the peninsula. It made landfall near Keaton Beach at 7:45 a.m. as a high-end Category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds near 125 mph (205 kph). And the storm brought flooding to the streets of Tampa and other communities.
Florida residents living in vulnerable coastal areas were ordered to pack up and leave as Idalia of the Gulf of Mexico. And those who didn't were warned to find a safe place while the storm moves through.
鈥淒on鈥檛 put your life at risk by doing anything dumb at this point,鈥� Gov. Ron DeSantis said at a news conference Wednesday morning. 鈥淭his thing鈥檚 powerful. If you鈥檙e inside, just hunker down until it gets past you.鈥�
Storm surge could rise as high as 15 feet (4.5 meters) in some places.
Diane Flowers was sound asleep at 1 a.m. Wednesday in her Wakulla County home while her husband watched the weather on TV. When the storm was upgraded to a Category 4, they received a text from their son, a firefighter/EMT in Franklin County, which is also along the Gulf Coast.
鈥淗e said, 鈥榊ou guys need to leave,鈥欌�� Flowers said. 鈥淎nd he鈥檚 not one for overreacting, so when he told us to leave, we just packed our stuff, got in our car and got going.鈥�
They quickly packed a few clothes, their medicine, dog food for their two border collies, a computer, important documents and a bag of Cheetos and went searching for a place to stay, and ended up in Dothan, Alabama.
The National Weather Service in Tallahassee called Idalia 鈥渁n unprecedented event鈥� since no major hurricanes on record have ever passed through the bay abutting the Big Bend. The state, still dealing with lingering , feared disastrous results.
But not everyone was heeding the warning to leave.
Andy Bair, owner of the Island Hotel on Cedar Key, said he intended to 鈥渂abysit鈥� his bed-and-breakfast, which predates the Civil War. The building has not flooded in the almost 20 years he has owned it, not even when Hurricane Hermine flooded the city in 2016.
鈥淏eing a caretaker of the oldest building in Cedar Key, I just feel kind of like I need to be here,鈥� Bair said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e proven time and again that we鈥檙e not going to wash away. We may be a little uncomfortable for a couple of days, but we鈥檒l be OK eventually.鈥�
Idalia had grown into a Category 2 system on Tuesday afternoon and became a Category 3 just hours earlier Wednesday before strengthening to a Category 4 and then weakening slightly to a high-end Category 3. The National Weather Service in Tallahassee called Idalia 鈥渁n unprecedented event鈥� since no major hurricanes on record have ever passed through the bay abutting the Big Bend.
Hurricanes are measured on a five category scale, with a Category 5 being the strongest. A Category 3 storm is the first on the scale considered a major hurricane and the National Hurricane Center says a Category 4 storm brings ."
Tolls were waived on highways out of the danger area, shelters were open and hotels prepared to take in evacuees. More than 30,000 utility workers were gathering to make repairs as quickly as possible in the hurricane鈥檚 wake. About 5,500 National Guard troops were activated.
In Tarpon Springs, a coastal community northwest of Tampa, 60 patients were evacuated from a hospital out of concern that the system could bring a 7-foot (2.1-meter) storm surge.
Idalia was expected to weaken as it moved inland but it was still expected to be a hurricane while moving across southern Georgia later Wednesday, the hurricane center said. It would then reach the Carolinas. Both Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster announced states of emergency, freeing up state resources and personnel, including hundreds of National Guard troops.
鈥淲e鈥檒l be prepared to the best of our abilities,鈥� said Russell Guess, who was topping off the gas tank on his truck in Valdosta, Georgia. His co-workers at Cunningham Tree Service were doing the same. 鈥淭here will be trees on people鈥檚 house, trees across power lines.鈥�
Idalia pummeled Cuba with heavy rains on Monday and Tuesday, leaving the tobacco-growing province of Pinar del Rio underwater and many of its residents without power.
鈥淭he priority is to reestablish power and communications and keep an eye on the agriculture: Harvest whatever can be harvested and prepare for more rainfall,鈥� President Miguel D铆az-Canel said in a meeting with government officials Tuesday.
State media did not report any deaths or major damage.
Asked about the hurricane Tuesday, President Joe Biden said he had spoken to DeSantis and 鈥減rovided him with everything that he possibly needs.鈥�
Ian was responsible last year for . The Category 5 hurricane damaged 52,000 structures, nearly 20,000 of which were destroyed or severely damaged.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration the 2023 hurricane season would be far busier than initially forecast, partly because of extremely warm ocean temperatures. The season runs through Nov. 30, with August and September typically the peak.
