August 31, 2023 Tropical storm Idalia news

Anthony Altman, who owns EXPLORIDA, moved merchandise from his business to protect it from storm waters.

Small business owners along a commercial street in Crystal River, Florida, are cleaning up a day after Hurricane Idalia swept through the area.

Anthony Altman, who owns EXPLORIDA, an ecotourism company that offers manatee and scalloping tours, was hard at work Thursday cleaning the inside of his shop, which sustained water damage.

Altman told CNN he prepared well ahead of the storm after seeing the weather forecast and realizing his business would likely be in its path.

Faced with the possibility of losing his business, Altman said he rented a truck and moved his merchandise out before the storm arrived. That move likely saved him thousands of dollars in lost property, and he said he was able to “minimize most of the damage.”

Altman, who has lived and worked in the Crystal River area for several years, said he’d been shocked to see just how much the temperatures in the gulf had risen this summer. 

He and his employees hope to reopen soon. 

Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Deanne Criswell briefed President Joe Biden by phone while surveying damage from Hurricane Idalia, FEMA spokesperson Jeremy Edwards said in a statement.

Biden directed Criswell to travel to Florida after Idalia made landfall Wednesday.

The president announced Thursday that he will travel to the area this weekend while thanking FEMA employees at DC headquarters for their response.

Residents spent Thursday clearing piles of debris from homes and businesses in the hard-hit island town of Cedar Key, Florida, starting the long recovery after it was pummelled by Hurricane Idalia.

Residents were allowed to return on Wednesday. They said electricity has been restored but there is no running water. The temperature felt like 97 degrees on Thursday as residents sifted through the debris.

Several houses along the water were destroyed, while dwellings further inland appeared untouched. Large piles of wood and trash lined the streets. 

Greenwood, a manager at a bed and breakfast, said she was relieved to find the property, which was built in 1880, suffered minimal damage.

“It’s on one of the highest points of the island. The storm surge would have had to be above 15 feet (to reach it),” Greenwood said.

An ocean gauge measured a storm surge closer to 9 feet. 

After storming ashore in Florida as a Category 3 storm early Wednesday, Idalia has swept out to sea off the coast of North Carolina.

Idalia was the most powerful hurricane to slam the Big Bend region of Florida’s Gulf Coast in more than a century. Thousands of homes were damaged — some with shredded walls and roofs, others with murky, waist-high floodwater that officials warn could be dangerous for days to come.

Florida officials say that although there is damage, residents largely listened to evacuation orders and stayed out of harm’s way. 

Now a massive cleanup is underway in Florida as well as across parts of Georgia and North Carolina.

Here’s what it’s like in some of the hard-hit areas:

Here’s what else to know:

President Joe Biden speaks at the headquarters of the Federal Emergency Management Agency in Washington, DC, on Thursday.

President Joe Biden is pledging long-term support to communities in Florida that are cleaning up after Hurricane Idalia hit the state’s northwestern areas this week.

Biden, speaking at the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s headquarters in Washington, DC, on Thursday, said responding to such disasters while they are happening is “just the beginning.”

“Some of this is going to take months and years to make sure we restore the people to the circumstances there before this disaster hit,” Biden said.

Biden said he will travel to Florida on Saturday morning. The president will “visit the areas most impacted by the hurricane,” White House Homeland Security Advisor Liz Sherwood-Randall later said.

The president has been “talking daily,” with FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell, who traveled to Florida yesterday after the hurricane made landfall in the state, according to Sherwood-Randall.

Earlier Thursday, the president formally declared a major disaster in Florida. This makes federal funding available to people in several counties hit by the storm. During the hurricane, the Biden administration also deployed personnel and resources.

Biden also called on Congress to pass funding for the federal Disaster Relief Fund “to be able to continue to show up and meet the needs of the American people to deal with immediate crises that we’re facing right now, as well as the long-term commitments we have to make to finish the job in Maui and elsewhere.”

The president made a sideswipe at lawmakers who’ve questioned the need for additional funding for FEMA, asking how, in the wake of twin disasters this month — Hurricane Idalia and the Maui wildfires — anyone could doubt the need for more funding.

CNN’s DJ Judd contributed reporting to this post.

Anna King, a Florida restaurant and hotel owner, has a daunting cleanup ahead, after her business was flooded with 4 feet of water after Hurricane Idalia tore through the area.

She told CNN that crews are at the scene providing ideas on how the establishment should move forward and that she foresees the damages will cost her nearly half a million dollars. King said she thinks the hotel rooms and restaurant will need a full gut renovation.

Despite the price tag, King is giving back to her community. She said she is trying to procure propane cookers so the restaurant can offer warm meals to people. King also plans to use the restaurant’s wedding center as an area where residents can take a break and also talk to insurance agents.

Hurricane Idalia caused “significant damage” after it ripped into Florida’s Big Bend with 125 mph winds and record-setting storm surge, but the storm’s evolution before landfall likely prevented an even worse disaster, Jamie Rhome, deputy director of the National Hurricane Center told CNN.

On Wednesday morning, with the storm just 20 miles and 45 minutes from landfall, the hurricane center announced Idalia’s winds dropped 5 mph because it was undergoing an eyewall replacement cycle.

An eyewall replacement cycle is akin to a snake shedding its skin. Strong hurricanes can shed a smaller eyewall — the ring of most intense winds that surrounds the hurricane’s calm eye — in favor of a larger one. During this process, the storm’s winds can weaken, but when the process is complete, the storm will be larger and can then start to intensify even further.

Idalia’s landfall kept this process from completing, preventing the hurricane from being even larger and more intense than forecast at landfall.

But even an incomplete eyewall cycle could have had a “massive” effect on what people experienced, Rhome said. The hurricane’s structure was changing, which affected where the strongest winds were set up and who got the worst surge as a result.

Idalia’s wind field was expanding during the eyewall replacement cycle, which means it may have broadened the scope of the surge at the expense of its peak intensity.

The cycle “would dramatically change where surge happens,” Rhome said. “I can’t put into words just how sensitive surge is to the wind. Not just the wind speed, but also the wind direction, too. These structural changes can also change the angle of the wind, which can have dramatic impacts on the surge or the timing of the wind (and the surge) relative to the tide.”

The tides were another key factor in the severity of the surge, especially in a place like Cedar Key.

“The other thing that happened with Cedar Key is the (storm’s) timing changed,” Rhome said. “It, luckily, luckily came in at low tide, which probably whacked, you know, four feet off of it (the surge totals), just with that.”

A fallen tree obstructs a road in the aftermath of Hurricane Idalia on August 31, 2023 in Perry, Florida.

Hurricane Idalia caused billions of dollars in damage, but the price tag won’t be nearly as high as other major hurricanes, Moody’s Analytics said Thursday.

According to preliminary cost estimates from Moody’s, Hurricane Idalia caused between $12 billion and $20 billion of damage and lost output.

For context, last year’s Hurricane Ian, which made landfall in western Florida as a Category 4 storm, caused an estimated $112.9 billion of total damage in the United States, according to the National Hurricane Center. That made it the third-costliest US hurricane on record. 

The damage this time would have been greater if not for two factors: The relatively fast speed Idalia moved through the region and where it made landfall.  

“Unlike other recent events, the bulk (of the cost) comes not from a handful of counties that were decimated but instead a large, multi-state area experiencing significant but not catastrophic damage,” Adam Kamins, director of regional economics at Moody’s Analytics, wrote in a report on Thursday. 

Kamins said it was “fortuitous” that the storm made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend, a region with fewer people and structures than other areas that have been hit by major natural disasters. 

Kamins noted that property values in the Big Bend are lower than the rest of the state. That is also suppressing damage estimates. 

Moody’s RMS plans to release official estimates of insured losses in the next two weeks. 

In an aerial view, a home smolders after burning as Hurricane Idalia passed offshore on August 30, 2023 in Hudson, Florida.

Florida officials said Hurricane Idalia did not cause greater damage or loss of life because of local warnings and prepared residents.  

Kevin Guthrie, director of Florida Division of Emergency Management, said state and local officials stressed to residents that if they needed power, they had to evacuate.

“It seems that people have heeded that call, and we’re grateful for that,” Guthrie said on Thursday.

“I think those officials in those really hard-hit counties … did a good job. I think citizens responded very appropriately,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said.

DeSantis said although there is storm damage from Idalia in the state, residents listened and stayed out of harm’s way. 

He added that the forecast was “pretty solid” in comparison to what happened with Hurricane Ian last year, when the track shifted “in a matter of 48 hours … migrating all the way down (to) southwest Florida.”

Florida officials are working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency “to expedite recovery processes and ensure we can assist the Big Bend with needed recovery efforts,” Guthrie added. 

There is one confirmed storm fatality in Georgia after a tree fell on a vehicle in Lowndes County during Hurricane Idalia, according to Georgia Emergency Management Director Chris Stallings.

Recovery efforts continue in the state and Gov. Brian Kemp is scheduled to visit South Georgia on Friday to assess damage, state officials said during a post-storm briefing Thursday.

Kemp and Stallings offered their thoughts and prayers to the family of the person killed during the briefing. The identity of the individual has not yet been released. 

According to the governor, Hurricane Idalia “was as bad as anything they have ever seen.”

Stallings said additionally, “there’s a lot of minor injuries” related to the storm.

The state had as many as 277,000 customers without power during the storm, according to Stallings.

“I’d like to say this huge thank you to our EMC and Georgia Power partners” who’ve worked today and overnight, the director said. As of Thursday morning, about 107,000 customers are without power, Stallings said.

A For Sale sign stands in the middle of a debris pile in Cedar Key, Florida, on August 30, 2023.

Named for the trees that once covered the islands, Cedar Key, Florida, is located about four miles out in the Gulf of Mexico and connected to the mainland by a single road that crosses over four small, low bridges.

Its isolation is part of its appeal. With under 800 full-time residents, the island town bills itself as a “haven for artists, writers and ‘adventure’ tourists, who find the unspoiled environment their inspiration.”

But it’s no haven today.

Hurricane Idalia brought record-high storm surge that flooded much of the island, lifting up and tossing old homes into the Gulf of Mexico, strewing the streets and beach with chairs, microwaves, hairdryers and other debris and inundating much of the waterfront commercial district. There was no power, no water and no sewage, Cedar Key Fire and Rescue said Wednesday night, although the power has since been restored overnight.

Even so, early warnings, a mandatory evacuation order and a population that knows the island’s notable hurricane history prevented any loss of life. And now the rebuilding begins.

“My neighbor’s house across from me was submerged to the roof line, but we had no injuries,” he said. “We’re here. We’ll rebuild. We’ll do what Cedar Key does. All in all, I feel incredibly blessed.”

Indeed, the cycle of destruction and rebuilding is part of the history of Cedar Key, located as it is in the hurricane-friendly warm waters of the Gulf. An unnamed hurricane destroyed the island in 1896, and Hurricane Easy ripped the roofs off most of the island’s buildings in 1950.

Cedar Key was once the terminus of Florida’s cross-state railroad and a busy port city. The famed naturalist John Muir visited in 1867 as part of a thousand-mile walk to the Gulf and wrote of the beauty of the place.

Its days as a bustling port city are long gone. Now, visitors can enjoy the beach or one of the other natural hobbies like fishing, bird-watching in the nearby refuge and kayaking. And unlike Key West, Cedar Key has avoided high-end commercial development along its shores and remains a low-key spot.

Read more.

President Joe Biden has formally declared a major disaster in Florida following Hurricane Idalia, the White House announced.

Biden spoke with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis earlier Thursday to inform him of the declaration.

With nearly 275,000 customers in Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas experiencing power outages due to Idalia, according to data from PowerOutage.us, generators are likely humming across those states right now.

But incorrectly using a generator can lead to dangerous consequences, such as electric shock or electrocution, fire, or carbon monoxide poisoning from engine exhaust, according to the US Department of Energy’s Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response.

If you’re without power and thinking of using a portable generator, here are seven tips for doing it safely.

Install battery-operated carbon monoxide alarms

Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas produced when a fossil fuel – coal, crude oil or natural gas – is burned by furnaces, portable heaters or generators, vehicles, stoves, grills, gas ranges or fireplaces. Depending on a generator’s power capacity, it can emit as much carbon monoxide as a few hundred idling cars.

Breathing in too much carbon monoxide can cause symptoms including headache, upset stomach, dizziness, weakness, vomiting, chest pain and confusion. Depending on how much you inhale and your health status, you could also faint or die.

Installing and testing a battery-operated carbon monoxide monitor with a digital readout that shows CO concentration level is a critical method for knowing levels of carbon monoxide exposure, according to Nicolette Nye, a spokesperson for the US Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Disconnect your normal source of power

Even if you’ve lost electricity, you still need to disconnect your normal source of power by turning the main breaker or fuse off before plugging the generator into a household circuit, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

If you don’t, “the electrical current could reverse, go back through the circuit to the outside power grid, and energize power lines or electrical systems in other buildings to at or near their original voltage without the knowledge of utility or other workers,” the CDC warned.

Know where and how to position them

Generators are for outdoor use only, far away from any physical structures. The National Weather Service says you should keep a generator at least 20 feet away from doors, windows and vents, and never run one inside a home or garage, even if doors and windows are open.

A very common scenario that leads to deaths is when rainy weather prompts people to put generators in their garage and maybe prop their garage door open, driving exhaust into the home, said Paul Hope, the home and garden editor at Consumer Reports.

Keep reading for more tips.

A displaced mobile home is seen in the middle of a road in Steinhatchee, Florida, on August 30.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday said Hurricane Idalia caused “significant damage particularly along Florida’s Big Bend, but the community is resilient.”

According to DeSantis, about “420,000 accounts that lost power during the storm have been restored and the bulk of the outages at this point are in that Big Bend region, a lot of the rural counties that bore the brunt of the storm.”

About 141,000 customers remain without power across the state, according to PowerOutage.us. DeSantis noted that some areas — such as parts of Taylor County in the Big Bend area — remain “100% out.”

The governor added that there were about 40 successful rescues made as of last night.

“This includes 29 by the Florida National Guard, our Fish and Wildlife officers assisted with a medical evacuation yesterday and they are conducting high water and welfare checks,” he said. 

Later today: DeSantis said he and FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell will tour “some of the hard-hit areas like Cedar Key and Steinhatchee” to assess storm damage.

Temperature map for Thursday, August 31.

Tens of thousands of people in northern Florida and southern Georgia without power after Idalia will have to suffer through sweltering summertime heat.

High temperatures across this hard-hit area are expected to climb into the lower 90s on Thursday afternoon.

These temperatures are typical for late August, but Idalia’s rain is causing the heat index, a measure of what the temperature feels like on the skin when accounting for relative humidity, to soar.

The heat index for a majority of locations without power in Florida and Georgia will top out in the low to middle 100s on Thursday.

A heat index value in the triple digits can be dangerous for anyone without access to power or a reliable way to cool down.

Taking breaks during Idalia cleanup efforts and staying hydrated are important ways to prevent heat-related illness.  

A City of Tallahassee electrical crew member works to repair a street light in Tallahassee, Florida, on August 30.

Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Deanne Criswell said the biggest priorities on Thursday include restoring power and cleaning up debris as Idalia moves off the coast of the Carolinas.

“Today the focus is to make sure that we’ve accounted for everybody and there is nobody still stranded in any of these communities, and begin to start to restore that power. The next part will be to start removing the debris, making sure we can have access into the communities,” she told CNN.

Florida has brought in 30,000 to 40,000 linemen to work on restoring power, Criswell said, and the Army Corps of Engineers is on standby to help with installing generators.

According to PowerOutage.us, as of 8:15 a.m. ET, there are about 145,000 customers without power in Florida, about 107,000 out in Georgia, and 33,000 and 23,000 out in North Carolina and South Carolina, respectively.

President Joe Biden speaks at the White House on Wednesday, August 30.

President Joe Biden approved an emergency declaration for the state of South Carolina due to Hurricane Idalia.

Areas of the state, including in Charleston, have experienced severe flooding.

Here’s the full statement from the White House:

As Idalia moves out over the Atlantic Ocean, heavy rainfall and gusty winds from the storm will continue for a time Thursday. Here’s what to expect throughout the day: 

Thursday morning:  

Thursday afternoon: 

Thursday evening: 

A flooded street is seen in Isle of Palms, South Carolina, on Wednesday, August 30.

After making landfall in Florida as a Category 3 hurricane Wednesday morning, Idalia slammed parts of southeast Georgia and the Carolinas, flooding coastal areas and leaving hundreds of thousands of power outages.

The storm weakened to tropical storm early Thursday morning, causing life-threatening flash flooding in parts of eastern North Carolina, the National Hurricane Center said.

Here are other developments from the storm as of early Thursday:

An Xfinity utility truck after Hurricane Idalia made landfall in Fort Myers, Florida, on August 30.

As Tropical Storm Idalia continues to move offshore, it’s still having a devastating effect in the southeast with life-threatening flooding and widespread power outages.

As of 3 a.m. ET, power outages have exceeded more than 300,000 customers.

Here’s a breakdown of power outages per state:

Tropical Storm warnings remain mainly across southeastern North Carolina. A flood watch remains in effect for parts of North Carolina and will begin to expire through the day Thursday.