As Florida braces for Hurricane Idalia's expected landfall on Wednesday, August 30, a state of emergency has been declared in 46 of the state's 67 counties.
As Idalia reportedly crossed Cuba early Tuesday morning, August 29, it was upgraded to a Category 1 hurricane, as reported by FOX Weather. On Wednesday morning, the hurricane is predicted to make landfall on the western coast of Florida, where it will strengthen into a major hurricane with a "life-threatening" storm surge.
State of Emergency
On Tuesday morning, FOX Weather stated that Hurricane Idalia was centered around 370 miles south-southwest of Tampa and roughly 85 miles north of the western point of Cuba. Maximum sustained winds for Hurricane Idalia are 75 mph, with greater gusts, and it is headed north at 14 mph.
The day before the expected landfall, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis had a news conference with other state representatives.
According to Fox News, DeSantis said the hurricane is expected to make landfall on Wednesday morning in the Big Bend of Florida. From Sarasota County in the south to Franklin County in the north, the whole Gulf Coast is under a hurricane alert.
"There are over 20 shelters open, an additional 20 special needs shelters are mobilizing or on standby throughout the state of Florida. We have 5,500 National Guardsmen that have been activated," he added.
DeSantis also said that due to the hurricane, 42 school districts had decided to cancel classes for two days. But he assured them on Tuesday morning that they still had time to be ready for the storm.
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In Preparation for the Storm
Biden said earlier this week that he had talked with DeSantis about signing an Emergency Declaration for Florida. This would release federal monies to assist with cleaning and rebuilding. Biden stated, "Florida has my full support as they prepare for Idalia and its aftermath."
Florida has called up hundreds of National Guard members to help with rescue and recovery operations, and they have 2,400 high-water vehicles and 12 planes at their disposal.
Meanwhile, Florida residents were stocking up on sandbags, stowing away patio furniture, and evacuating low-lying houses along the Gulf Coast in preparation for the impending storm surge, which may pose a serious danger to human life. Some people were bringing out generators in anticipation of blackouts.
DeSantis warned Florida residents in the path of the storm to prepare for a possible loss of electricity service.
As early as late Tuesday, hurricane-force winds from Idalia may begin impacting Florida in advance of the storm's Wednesday landfall. It is the first hurricane of the season, and it might strike a serious blow to Florida, which is still recovering from Hurricane Ian's devastation.
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