MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Idalia makes landfall a Category 3 hurricane in Florida

“We have to remain vigilant,” President Biden said

Two people have died and “incalculable damage” was caused by Idalia as it hit Florida before moving on to Georgia and the Carolinas as a tropical storm. The storm reached Category 4 status with winds up to 131 mph before hitting as a Category 3 hurricane.

 A spokesperson for the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) said two victims perished in a traffic accident. Another fatality was reported in Georgia.

Some 5,500 Florida National Guard troops have been assisting people trapped in the middle of the storm, with many places still inaccessible to first responders, it was explained.

Tropical storm warnings remain in effect for Northeast Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina through Wednesday night.

Sustained winds blew as strong as 125 mph with heavy rain and flooding that damaged much of the Big Bend region of Florida, where Idalia made landfall earlier Wednesday.

More than half a million homes were left without power, although many have had it restored. As soon as the storm allowed it, utility crews were to restore power to all affected areas.

In addition, local authorities have activated protocols against looters, who “are the worst of the worst,” according to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

“We haven’t had a storm take this path at this level since the 1890s, that hit this part of Florida, so this is something that is a really big deal,” DeSantis also said.

“As the storm passes, do not drive through flooded streets, and assume that all downed power lines are still hot and live,” the governor said. “We have a lot of people trying to remedy that, but that is very hazardous in the immediate aftermath of the storm,” DeSantis warned Floridians.

US President Joseph Biden announced Wednesday that he would make all necessary federal resources available to help states cope with the effects of the disaster, which he called another example of the consequences of climate change.

“I don't think anyone can deny the impact of the climate crisis anymore. Just look around. Historic floods,” Biden said. He also addressed the devastation from wildfires in Hawaii.

“I mean, historic floods, more intense droughts, extreme heat, significant wildfires that cause significant damage like we've never seen before, not only through the Hawaiian Islands but in Canada and other parts of the world.”

“The impacts of the storm are being felt throughout the southeast, even as it moves up the eastern coast of the United States,” he said. “We have to remain vigilant.”

As a tropical storm, Idalia flooded parts of Charleston, and the harbor in the South Carolina city recorded its fifth-highest peak tide Wednesday night, according to the National Weather Service.

According to poweroutage.us, around 149,000 customers were without power in Georgia, where Gov. Brian Kemp warned residents to “stay safe as the storm moves through” and vowed that state officials were working around the clock to help those affected by Idalia.

Georgia could see extreme flooding as the storm collides with a full “blue moon” Wednesday night that could raise tides above normal.

In Georgia, one person died and a second was seriously injured when a tree fell Wednesday afternoon in Lowndes County, the Valdosta Daily Times reported. The two were cutting up a fallen tree blocking a road when a second tree fell, according to Lowndes County Sheriff Ashley Paulk.

The state of Florida is reeling from the devastation of Hurricane Idalia, which reached the region as a Category 4 storm and is the strongest to hit the area in 125 years.