Hurricane Isaias makes landfall: Florida, Alabama, and Georgia face up to 8 inches of rain as 600,000 left without power

Hurricane Isaias made landfall on Friday (Oct. 9) as a Category 2 storm, hitting Alabama and the Florida Panhandle with heavy rain, strong winds, and dangerous flooding. Isaias, which is the first hurricane of the Atlantic season, made landfall near Destin, Florida, according to the Miami-based National Hurricane Center. The storm had maximum sustained winds of 105 mph.

Nearly 600,000 without power

In Destin, the roads were flooded, according to a report by The Associated Press. In nearby Pensacola, police warned residents to stay off the streets due to debris across roadways. Some counties in the Panhandle region paused emergency response on Friday night over dangerous conditions. Parts of southern Alabama have also seen flooding.


Nearly 600,000 customers in Florida and Alabama were without power as of Friday evening, as per data from poweroutage.com.

Mandatory evacuations ordered

A major concern is a storm surge that could rise as high as 9 feet or 2.7 meters, according to the hurricane center. Areas with the highest risk include Florida’s Pensacola Beach and the Gulf Islands National Seashore.

Several counties have announced mandatory evacuations, even as Mobile in Alabama imposed a curfew through Saturday morning. Florida, Alabama, and Georgia have all issued states of emergency.

'Buckle down at this point'

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said at a news conference that flash flooding would be a hazard throughout the region. "The storm is here. Buckle down at this point. Don’t be getting out on the roads," DeSantis said.

The governor told residents to expect gas shortages as well as closures of bridges and highways. Florida has tapped about 5,000 National Guard soldiers and airmen to help tackle the impact of the storm.

President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House on Friday night that the storm was under control. "We’re watching it very closely, the hurricane," Trump said.

Heavy rain likely

Forecasters have warned of heavy rain, with 4 to 8 inches likely from southern Alabama to southwestern Georgia through the weekend. Isaias was slowing down after it reached land, and might be downgraded to a tropical storm by Saturday afternoon (Oct. 10), as per the hurricane center.

Many flights hit

Most flights at several Panhandle airports were grounded, including all flights coming into and going out of Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport. Isaias will likely miss the oil industry’s biggest hubs along the US Gulf Coast, the AP reported. Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Rachel was expected to cause heavy winds and rain in northern Mexico and Southern California over the weekend.

Unusually quiet Atlantic hurricane season

Isaias developed over four months into the Atlantic hurricane season and was just a day short of matching a 121-year-old record for the region's latest-forming hurricane. The season typically runs from June 1 through November 30. The Atlantic hurricane season has been unusually calm this year due to a strong El Niño, a climate pattern known to disrupts storm formation over the Atlantic.