Hurricane Isaias weakens after hitting Destin with high winds and floods
Hurricane Isaias hit Destin, Florida, as a Category 2 storm, cutting power to hundreds of thousands and causing dangerous flooding across the region.
A major storm struck near Destin, Florida, on Friday evening before rapidly losing wind speed. It cut electricity to hundreds of thousands of homes and created dangerous flooding conditions across multiple southern states. It was the first hurricane of the Atlantic season.
The system made landfall Friday as a Category 2 hurricane. Wind speeds dropped sharply to 35 mph, turning it into a post-tropical cyclone. It moved inland across Alabama on Saturday.
Flash flood warnings and tornado risks continued across the region. Officials warned that life-threatening storm surges still threatened parts of the Florida Panhandle.
More than 911,000 customers lost electricity across Florida, Alabama and Georgia early Saturday, according to poweroutage.com. Parts of southern Alabama suffered heavy flooding. Officials in Mobile reported downed trees and power lines.
Roads closed in Houston County due to blocked paths. That county sits in the southeastern corner of Alabama.
Tim Mowry rode out the tempest from his house in Pensacola, Florida. Strong wind sounded like a train whistle through his patio door. Standing water filled his backyard, and parts of his fence fell.
Mowry ran a generator during the outage. Downed trees and utility lines prevented his son from driving over.
“As far as Pensacola-wise we really got fortunate,” Mowry said.
Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves said on his Facebook page that the local airport took damage. Downtown lost power. Intense winds tore the roof off a local hotel.
Governor Ron DeSantis reported no confirmed fatalities. All state bridges and major highways reopened, DeSantis said.
DeSantis warned that flood threats continue in areas east of the track. Heavy rain will continue falling there.
“The risk of flooding is still high,” DeSantis said. “Sometimes these things happen a day or two days after the storm goes through. So the flooding story is not over.”
Tropical cyclones form over warm ocean waters before moving ashore. Emergency crews typically clear roads and restore utility lines once winds subside.
Damage assessments continue across affected coastal communities in Destin and surrounding counties.
