After assaulting Cuba with heavy rainfall on Tuesday, Idalia intensified into a hurricane, posing a threat to send a fatal storm surge and hazardous winds on Florida’s Gulf Coast.
Citizens of Florida moved their low-lying houses and gathered sandbags a day early to get ready for a hurricane that the National Hurricane Center said might have continuous gusts of up to 120 mph (193 kph). This might declare it a Category 3 storm, which could give a serious blow to a state already recovering from storm Ian’s aftereffects.
The core of Idalia is expected to make landfall in Florida on Wednesday and proceed close to the coast of North Carolina on Thursday.
At the moment, storm surge poses the greatest risks, according to Robbie Berg, a senior hurricane expert at the National Hurricane Center in Miami, on the morning of Tuesday.