Category 4 Hurricane Idalia projected to hit Florida with ‘catastrophic’ storm surge

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Hurricane Idalia steamed toward Florida’s Big Bend region as a dangerous Category 4 storm Wednesday morning, threatening deadly storm surges and destructive winds in an area not accustomed to such pummeling.

Florida residents living in vulnerable coastal areas were ordered to pack up and leave as Idalia gained strength in the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico. And those who didn’t were warned to find a safe place while the storm moves through.
“Don’t put your life at risk by doing anything dumb at this point,” Gov. Ron DeSantis said at a news conference Wednesday morning. “This thing’s powerful. If you’re inside, just hunker down until it gets past you.”

Idalia was projected to come ashore with sustained winds of at least 130 mph (209 kph) in the lightly populated Big Bend region, where the Florida Panhandle curves into the peninsula. Storm surge could rise as high as 15 feet (4.5 meters) in some places.