Hurricane Isaias has made landfall in the United States state of Florida, bringing life-threatening flooding and winds that have forced thousands of residents to evacuate.
Landfall and mandatory evacuations
Weakening slightly to a category 2 hurricane with 110 mph (175 kph) winds, the storm hit Florida’s western panhandle on Friday evening. Florida, Alabama, and Georgia each issued states of emergency as meteorologists warned of life-threatening storm surges potentially causing up to 9 feet (2.7m) of flooding in certain areas.
Both Florida and Alabama instituted mandatory evacuations for coastal communities in the storm’s path, as well as for non-residents, tourists, and visitors in key counties. Florida Senator Rick Scott urged residents in designated areas to evacuate immediately via social media, writing: “DO NOT WAIT! Get out NOW!” Alabama Governor Kay Ivey also issued a mandatory evacuation order.
Impact and power outages
Ahead of the landfall, hundreds of thousands of customers were left without power across the country’s southeast. PowerOutage.us reported over 350,000 outages in Florida and 170,000 in Alabama. In Georgia, where the hurricane’s winds were expected to be felt further inland at a lesser intensity, approximately 8,000 customers experienced power outages.
Melissa Watson, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service, warned of the potential for accompanying tornadoes and advised individuals who did not evacuate to seek higher ground and maintain multiple ways to receive emergency warnings.
Regional weather systems
Isaias is one of three storm systems affecting North America. According to forecasts, the centre of Isaias is expected to move across Alabama and into the Tennessee Valley over the weekend. Meanwhile, Hurricane Simon is heading toward the Pacific coast of Mexico, and Tropical Storm Rachel is approaching the US-Mexico border along the Pacific, causing high tides and street flooding in southern California.