Hurricane Idalia Makes Landfall in Keaton Beach, Florida

Updated 10:52am August 30th

Damaging Winds Spreading

While Hurricane Idalia still pounds the Gulf coast of northern Florida, the center of the storm is moving into Georgia as of 10am on Wednesday morning. Winds of up to 105 mph are keeping Idalia at a Category 2 hurricane.

Valdosta, Georgia has already measured wind speeds of 67 mph.

When Did Idalia Hit?

Hurricane Idalia made landfall at Keaton Beach at 7:45am on Wednesday morning, bringing winds of 125 mph, making it a Category 3 hurricane after briefing weakening from a Category 4.

Currently at 110 mph, Hurricane Idalia is categorized as a Category 2, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Taking Refuge

Over 4,000 people in the strike zone area have taken shelter in Red Cross shelters. According to online data from the Red Cross, the largest population in the one shelter is in Largo, Florida with 442 people.

The Red Cross is still continuing to open 100 more shelters for others who need it.

Power Outages

As of 9:42am Wednesday morning, over 264,000 are without power, according to poweroutage.us

Bridge Closures

Sunshine Skyway Bridge is closed to all traffic due to excessive wind.
Northbound lanes of Howard Frankland Bridge are shut down to all traffic due to storm surge and flooding.
Eastbound lanes of the Courtney Campbell Causeway are closed due to storm surge and flooding.

Road Closures

Westbound lanes of W 75th Street and Manatee Avenue in Bradenton closed due to water on the road.
N Tamiami Trail and Fruitville Road in Sarasota are closed due to flooding.
Southbound Interstate 275 at mile marker 28 in St. Petersburg is closed due to flooding in the inside lane.
Palma Sola Causeway is closed due to water over the road.
Access shut down to John's Pass as sand and water are currently covering the road.
U.S. 41 from Fruitville Road to Main Street in Sarasota has been closed due to flooding.

Although Hurricane Idalia made landfall north of Southwest Florida, many roads in the area have still been affected. The US 41 North Bridge in Port Charlotte, Florida, and US Highway 41 South Bridge in Punta Gorda, Florida, have been shut down due to flooded roadways.

Traffic that is attempting to exit Interstate 75 at some exits are being redirected due to flooding.

Hurricane Idalia slammed into Florida's coast Wednesday morning just before 8am as a dangerous Category 3 hurricane, bringing with it life-threatening storm surge and catastrophic winds, promising to inflict disaster across the region.

Where Did Idalia Hit?

With maximum sustained winds of 125 mph, Hurricane Idalia made landfall near Keaton Beach, where the panhandle meets the peninsula. As the storm makes it way across Florida and threatening the coasts of South Carolina and Georgia, residents have been warned of flooding, strong winds, and tornadoes that have already impacted parts of Florida's west coast.

Hurricane Idalia is the third hurricane to hit Florida in the past year, with Hurricane Ian in September 2022 and Hurricane Nicole in November 2022.

Residents Have Been Warned

Residents of the area had been urged to evacuate, however the National Guard is prepping for rescues of those who chose to stay. According to the National Hurricane Center, Hurricane Idalia will bring up to 16 feet of storm surge and once-in-a-lifetime damaging winds.

“There is great potential for death and catastrophic devastation,” warned the Taylor County Sheriff’s Office.

A rare extreme wind warning has been put into place for parts of Taylor, Madison, and Suwannee counties. This type of warning means winds of up to 115 mph are imminent.

The National Weather Service office in Tallahassee warned, “Treat these imminent extreme winds as if a tornado was approaching and move immediately to the safe room in your shelter. Take action now to protect your life!”

For nearly 12 million people in north and central Florida, and southeast Georgia, a tornado watch is in effect until 3pm ET.

As the storm blows through, heavy winds and coastal flooding is already happening in areas around Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Fort Myers Beach, which is still recovering from Hurricane Ian last year.

Hurricane Idalia is expected to bring storm surge high enough to create a wall of water that reaches halfway up the second floor of a building. Storm surge of this magnitude is not survivable if caught in it.

Developments Across the State

On Tuesday evening, Florida Governor, Ron DeSantis, warned residents in evacuation zones to "go now" and to not try to ride this one out.

At least 28 counties had been issued evacuation orders including: Alachua, Baker, Citrus, Dixie, Franklin, Gilchrist, Gulf, Hamilton, Hernando, Hillsborough, Jefferson, Lafayette, Leon, Levy, Madison, Manatee, Marion, Nassau, Pasco, Pinellas, Putnam, Sarasota, Suwannee, Sumter, Taylor, Union, Volusia and Wakulla
According the Poweroutage.us, over 200,000 homes and businesses had no power as of 8:36am ET.
Tampa International airport canceled hundreds of flights, and St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport Terminal building closed Tuesday.
Several search and rescue teams, 33 ambulance strike teams, and over 5,000 National Guard members are ready, while the Coast Guard remains on standby.
Patients have been transferred from HCA Florida Pasadena Hospital, HCA Florida Trinity West Hospital and HCA Florida West Tampa Hospital. Tampa General Hospital was creating an "aqua fence" barrier that can withstand up to 15 feet of storm surge to be able to stay open for emergency care.
50 county school districts have been closed, along with several colleges across Florida.
According the the Florida Department of Corrections, around 4,000 inmates have been evacuated or relocated to a safer facility.
Out of the 67 Florida counties, 49 of them have been issued a state of emergency.

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