Hurricane Idalia made landfall early Wednesday on Florida's Gulf Coast as a powerful Category 3 storm. It is the strongest hurricane storm to hit the region in more than 125 years, as per a CNN report. Several videos posted on social media show high-speed winds and flooded roadways across Florida as the hurricane passed through the state and moved into South Georgia. The storm left 400,000 people in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina without power, the outlet further said in its report.
In one of the clips posted on X (formerly Twitter) by Clearwater Police Department, roads are flooded with the cops navigating the waters on a speed boat.
The Charleston County Sheriff's Office also posted a picture on social media of a flooded roadway and warned residents to stay home.
"It's a good night to stay in. Trees are down. Roads are flooded. If you encounter street flooding, turn around. Don't drown. This is the scene deputies found on Pinckney Street in McClellanville," the sheriff's office said in the post.
Several roads were closed and parks cars half-submerged due to the flooding. Coastal flooding is also expected in Storm Surge Watch areas in North Carolina on Thursday, as per National Weather Service's (NWS) latest update.
Idalia has now weakened into a tropical storm but nevertheless drenching the region with up to 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain and bringing life-threatening storm surges to coastal communities, officials said.
They described Idalia and its record-high surging waters as once-in-a-lifetime event for the area of northwest Florida most affected.
While there were no immediately confirmed deaths, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis stressed "that very well may change," given the storm's magnitude.
