A strong hurricane hit Florida with very strong winds, heavy rain, and dangerous flooding. It has now moved to the state of Georgia.
Hurricane Idalia became less strong after reaching the Big Bend area, but it is still causing a lot of damage.
Over 15 million people were told to leave their homes because of a dangerous storm. The experts predicted that waves could reach up to 16 feet high in certain parts of the coast.
Florida’s governor advised people to stay low and not assume anything.
“Do not endanger your life by doing anything foolish,” Ron DeSantis warned the residents.
“You should not play around with these strong winds because objects will be flying everywhere. ”
The roads and towns are covered with lots of water. The National Hurricane Center is saying that Idalia could cause dangerous flooding, with water moving from the ocean towards the land.
According to the PowerOutage. us website, more than 300,000 homes and businesses in Florida and Georgia have lost electricity as the center of the hurricane moves into southern Georgia.
Michael Bobbitt is staying on the second floor of his two-story house on Florida’s Cedar Key island. He understands that no assistance will arrive anytime soon.
“He said to the BBC that our whole city center is flooded. ”
A piece of the hotel broke and fell into the ocean. It feels like the Gulf is trying to consume us.
Strong winds are blowing seawater towards the land on the Big Bend coastline. The wind speed has decreased to about 90mph (150km/h), as stated by the NHC.
On Wednesday, Idalia became a Category four hurricane with wind speeds of approximately 130mph (215km/h), but later it weakened and hit Keaton Beach at 0750 local time (1250 BST).
The town is located in a less crowded area called Big Bend in Florida. It is known as the “nature coast” because it is where the Gulf of Mexico and the panhandle of Florida meet. The town has around 13,000 residents.
According to the National Hurricane Center (NHC), there has not been a big hurricane in that area of north-western Florida since 1851.
Jamie Rome, the deputy director of the National Hurricane Centre, said that certain communities might experience more severe impacts from a major hurricane than they expect. This is because a limited number of people fully comprehend the strength and potential devastation caused by such storms.
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Florida is concerned about a storm surge because it could cause severe flooding and damage to the state.
As of Wednesday, about 30 out of 67 counties in Florida had to evacuate in some way. This included 18 counties where evacuation was required in the western and central parts of the state.
Big airports and famous tourist spots like Walt Disney World have stopped their activities for now.
However, many people are choosing not to leave their homes and are now stuck there. Emergency teams are working hard to save them, and thousands of workers are being sent to fix the power outages.
John Paul Nohelj, a person living in Steinhatchee, said that he will not leave.
“If you live close to water, sometimes your bottom will get wet, and that’s just how it is. ”
Even though the wind is getting weaker, Idalia is still going to bring a lot of rain and flooding to Georgia and the Carolinas.
The 2023 Atlantic hurricane season is expected to have more storms than usual, and the most dangerous period is still two weeks from now.
We are not sure how climate change affects the number of tropical storms, but when the temperature of the ocean’s surface rises, it also warms the air above it. This warm air then provides more energy for hurricanes to form and become stronger.
Therefore, they are likely to become stronger with heavier rainfall.