Hurricane Idalia updates: Biden promises to ‘take care of Florida’ on visit after DeSantis snub
President Biden assesses scale of impacts from Hurricane Idalia from the sky before conducting a walking tour of communities
Joe Biden told Florida residents “your nation has your back” on Saturday as he toured areas of the state damaged by Hurricane Idalia.
The president assessed the scale of the storm’s impact from the air, before meeting members of the public on a walking tour.
But while Mr Biden was joined by one of the state’s Republican senators – Rick Scott – his trip was snubbed by governor Ron DeSantis, a possible rival in the next presidential election.
“As I’ve told your governor, if there’s anything your state needs, I’m ready to mobilize that support,” Mr Biden said.
Idalia ploughed into Florida as a Category 3 hurricane on Wednesday morning before losing power as it moved inland through Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina.
At around 5pm on Saturday afternoon the National Hurricane Center issued what it said was its final advisory on Idalia, noting that the post-tropical cyclone had moved away off Bermuda and that the storm warning for the island was discontinued.
Potentially dangerous surf and rip currents from Idalia will continue to hit the US east coast throughout the Labor Day weekend, it warned.
Hurricane Idalia makes landfall in Florida with ‘catastrophic storm surge’
Hurricane Idalia made landfall as a Category 3 on Wednesday morning bringing “catastrophic storm surge” to parts of Florida.
The hurricane slammed into the Big Bend area, near Keaton Beach, just before 8am (Eastern Time) with 125mph winds and warnings of up to 15ft of storm surge.
Two men were killed in separate vehicle crashes during heavy rainfall, Florida Highway Patrol reported on Wednesday. A 59-year-old man died in Gainesville after his pickup truck hit trees during “extremely rainy conditions”. A 40-year-old man in Spring Hill lost control of his truck during the severe conditions and hit a tree.
A third man was killed in Georgia, according to the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office, as he attempted to dismantle a fallen tree.
Idalia rapidly intensified to a Category 4 hurricane overnight before being downgraded as it reached Florida’s west coast where thousands of residents had been ordered to evacuate.
Hurricane Idalia makes landfall in Florida with ‘catastrophic storm surge’
Dramatic timelapse shows Idalia storm surge barrel through Florida’s Hudson Beach
Terrifying moment car carrying two people is flipped into air by Hurricane Idalia
A car carrying two people was flipped into the air by a tornado in South Carolina, as Hurricane Idalia tore through the state.
The black sedan was travelling through severe rainfall near Goose Creek, north of Charleston, on Wednesday afternoon when severe gusts of wind threw it up in the air at an intersection.
Footage shows the car being flipped upwards by the strong winds, causing it to spin on its rear wheels before flipping upside down and landing on the roof of another oncoming car.
The Goose Creek Police Department said that the two people inside the car suffered minor injuries and were taken for treatment at a local hospital.
Officials from Berkely County Emergency Management later confirmed that it was a brief tornado during Storm Idalia that had flipped the vehicle.
Terrifying moment car carrying two people is flipped into air by Hurricane Idalia
ICYMI: Biden warns Idalia still dangerous, says he hasn’t forgotten about the victims of Hawaii’s wildfires
President Joe Biden warned Wednesday that Hurricane Idalia was “still very dangerous” even though the storm had weakened after it came ashore in Florida and said he has not forgotten about the wildfire victims in Hawaii, declaring himself “laser focused” on helping them recover.
Challenged by back-to-back extreme weather episodes — wildfires that burned a historic town on the island of Maui to the ground and a hurricane that forecasters said could bring catastrophic flooding — the Democratic president who is running for a second term sought to appear in command of the federal government’s response to both events.
Biden warns Idalia still dangerous, says he hasn't forgotten about the victims of Hawaii's wildfires
‘Houses everywhere are submerged’: Florida residents share heartbreaking photos of Hurricane Idalia’s wrath
Florida residents shared heartbreaking photos of the destruction caused by Hurricane Idalia after the powerful storm swept into the state on Wednesday.
Idalia made landfall around 8am as an “extremely dangerous” Category 3 storm with 120mph winds and warnings of “catastrophic” coastal surge up to 15 feet in places. More than 250,000 customers were left without power on Wednesday.
The hurricane came ashore near Keaton Beach in Big Bend, southeast of Tallahassee, an area known as “Florida’s nature coast” and less densely-populated than other parts of the state.
But that was cold comfort for the small, tranquil communities dotting the coastline with Idalia forecast to be the strongest storm to hit the region in more than 100 years.
Florida residents share heartbreaking photos of Hurricane Idalia’s wrath
Dramatic timelapse shows Idalia storm surge barrel through Florida’s Hudson Beach
ICYMI: Terrifying moment car carrying two people is flipped into air by Hurricane Idalia
A car carrying two people was flipped into the air by a tornado in South Carolina, as Hurricane Idalia tore through the state.
The black sedan was travelling through severe rainfall near Goose Creek, north of Charleston, on Wednesday afternoon when severe gusts of wind threw it up in the air at an intersection.
Footage shows the car being flipped upwards by the strong winds, causing it to spin on its rear wheels before flipping upside down and landing on the roof of another oncoming car.
The Goose Creek Police Department said that the two people inside the car suffered minor injuries and were taken for treatment at a local hospital.
Officials from Berkely County Emergency Management later confirmed that it was a brief tornado during Storm Idalia that had flipped the vehicle.
Terrifying moment car carrying two people is flipped into air by Hurricane Idalia
Waves lash Sanibel Island causeway 11 months after it was partially destroyed
‘Houses everywhere are submerged’: Florida residents share heartbreaking photos of Hurricane Idalia’s wrath
Florida residents shared heartbreaking photos of the destruction caused by Hurricane Idalia after the powerful storm swept into the state on Wednesday.
Idalia made landfall around 8am as an “extremely dangerous” Category 3 storm with 120mph winds and warnings of “catastrophic” coastal surge up to 15 feet in places. More than 250,000 customers were left without power on Wednesday.
The hurricane came ashore near Keaton Beach in Big Bend, southeast of Tallahassee, an area known as “Florida’s nature coast” and less densely-populated than other parts of the state.
But that was cold comfort for the small, tranquil communities dotting the coastline with Idalia forecast to be the strongest storm to hit the region in more than 100 years.
Cedar Key was one of those severely impacted by storm surge and winds. Michael Presley Bobbitt, a playwright who lives in the town, decided not to evacuate and was sheltering on the second floor of his home, he shared on social media.
Florida residents share heartbreaking photos of Hurricane Idalia’s wrath
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