Re: Hurricane Idalia storm surge flooding Florida Gulf coast communities

[Democrat media fearmongering]

Mason Doyle <jama...@slut.com> wrote in

> But global warming! But ethane, oil, coal, gas!

CEDAR KEY - Hurricane Idalia unleashed life-threatening storm surges
and rainfall in an area not accustomed to such pummeling.

Idalia came ashore in the lightly populated Keaton Beach area of
Taylor County at 7:45 a.m. as a high-end Category 3 hurricane with
maximum sustained winds near 125 mph.

The storm brought flooding to the streets of Tampa and other
communities.

"The flooding of the streets, even in normal storms, seems like a
pretty big issue here. This makes it much more of a bigger issue and
I feel bad for folks who maybe don't have a couple of stories that
had to evacuate or they're stuck in their homes," said Tampa
resident Patrick Jarvis.

Cedar Key Fire Rescue posted on Facebook that the streets are
flooded.

"We are going to need everyone's patience. We are being told that
the tide will continue to come in till noon. Most of the streets
around the downtown area are underwater. We cannot get out at this
time to see just how bad things are. Please do not come to Cedar
Key. We will let everyone know when roads are open so you can come
to town safely. The video attached is more than an hour old now and
the tide is still coming hard. We have no power."

Florida residents living in vulnerable coastal areas were ordered to
pack up and leave as Idalia gained strength in the warm waters of
the Gulf of Mexico. And those who didn't were warned to find a safe
place while the storm moves through.

"Don't put your life at risk by doing anything dumb at this point,"
Gov. Ron DeSantis said at a news conference Wednesday morning. "This
thing's powerful. If you're inside, just hunker down until it gets
past you."

Storm surge could rise as high as 15 feet in some places.

Diane Flowers was sound asleep at 1 a.m. Wednesday in her Wakulla
County home while her husband watched the weather on TV. When the
storm was upgraded to a Category 4, they received a text from their
son, a firefighter/EMT in Franklin County, which is also along the
Gulf Coast.

"He said, 'You guys need to leave,'" Flowers said. "And he's not one
for overreacting, so when he told us to leave, we just packed our
stuff, got in our car and got going."

They quickly packed a few clothes, their medicine, dog food for
their two border collies, a computer, important documents and a bag
of Cheetos and went searching for a place to stay, and ended up in
Dothan, Alabama.

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.

But not everyone was heeding the warning to leave.

Andy Bair, owner of the Island Hotel on Cedar Key, said he intended
to "babysit" his bed-and-breakfast, which predates the Civil War.
The building has not flooded in the almost 20 years he has owned it,
not even when Hurricane Hermine flooded the city in 2016.

"Being a caretaker of the oldest building in Cedar Key, I just feel
kind of like I need to be here," Bair said. "We've proven time and
again that we're not going to wash away. We may be a little
uncomfortable for a couple of days, but we'll be OK eventually."

Idalia had grown into a Category 2 system on Tuesday afternoon and
became a Category 3 just hours earlier Wednesday before
strengthening to a Category 4 and then weakening slightly to a
high-end Category 3. 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.

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."

Tolls were waived on highways out of the danger area, shelters were
open and hotels prepared to take in evacuees. More than 30,000
utility workers were gathering to make repairs as quickly as
possible in the hurricane's wake. About 5,500 National Guard troops
were activated.

In Tarpon Springs, a coastal community northwest of Tampa, 60
patients were evacuated from a hospital out of concern that the
system could bring a 7-foot storm surge.

Idalia was expected to weaken as it moved inland but it was still
expected to be a hurricane while moving across southern Georgia
later Wednesday, the hurricane center said. It would then reach the
Carolinas. Both Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and South Carolina Gov.
Henry McMaster announced states of emergency, freeing up state
resources and personnel, including hundreds of National Guard
troops.

Idalia pummeled Cuba with heavy rains on Monday and Tuesday, leaving
the tobacco-growing province of Pinar del Rio underwater and many of
its residents without power.


State media did not report any deaths or major damage.

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

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

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration recently said
the 2023 hurricane season would be far busier than initially
forecast, partly because of extremely warm ocean temperatures. The
season runs through Nov. 30, with August and September typically the
peak.

https://www.cbsnews.com/miami/news/hurricane-idalia-storm-surge-
concerns-florida-gulf-coast-communities/?intcid=CNR-01-0623