A category 3 storm hit Florida on Wednesday unleashing threats to life, property, with surging probability of rainfall across an area that has never before received such pummelling.

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 “catastrophic damage.”

Last year hurricane Ian was responsible for almost 150 deaths. That Category 5 hurricane damaged 52,000 structures, nearly 20,000 of which were destroyed or severely damaged.

Here are top points to Hurricane Idalia

-More than 230,000 customers were without electricity as trees snapped by strong winds brought down power lines and rushing water covered streets, reported AP. 

-Idalia came ashore in the lightly populated Big Bend region, where the Florida Panhandle curves into the peninsula. It made landfall near Keaton Beach at 7.45 am as a high-end Category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds near 125 mph (205 kph).

-In Tallahassee, Florida’s capital city, the power went out well before the center of the storm arrived.

-Tallahassee Mayor John Dailey urged everyone to shelter in place — it was too late to risk going outside. Florida residents living in vulnerable coastal areas had been ordered to pack up and leave as Idalia gained strength in the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

-Asked about the hurricane Tuesday, President Joe Biden said he had spoken to DeSantis and “provided him with everything that he possibly needs.”

-US airlines cancelled over 850 flights as Hurricane Idalia made landfall in Florida‘s Gulf coast

-According to media reports, nearly 4,500 people are taking refuge in Red Cross shelters

-Both Georgia Governor Brian Kemp and South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster announced states of emergency, freeing up state resources and personnel, including hundreds of National Guard troops.

-Storm surge could rise as high as 16 feet (4.9 meters) in some places. Some counties implemented curfews to keep residents off roads, the AP report mentioned

-The National Weather Service in Tallahassee called Idalia “an unprecedented event” since no major hurricanes on record have ever passed through the bay abutting the Big Bend. The state, still dealing with lingering damage from last year’s Hurricane Ian, feared disastrous results.

(With agency inputs)

Updated: 30 Aug 2023, 08:08 PM IST