Idalia, which made landfall in Florida as a dangerous Category 3 hurricane early Wednesday is now crossing Georgia and headed toward South Carolina, as a downgraded tropical storm.
Per a 5 p.m. advisory from Fox Weather, Idalia’s winds were approximately 70 mph and 40 miles west of Savannah, Georgia.
Georgia officials say Hurricane Idalia is bringing down power lines and resulting in scattered reports of buildings damaged by falling trees.
Around 175,000 customers were without power in Georgia, where the storm’s center was approaching Savannah.
Gov. Brian Kemp said Wednesday that the storm’s impacts initially appeared to be less severe than 2018’s Hurricane Michael, which caused widespread damage in south Georgia. This storm is narrow and moving fast, but he warned those in its path to be aware of the dangers.
Multiple counties in Georgia saw winds between 70 and 80 mph, with some gusts up to 90 mph, Kemp said. Other areas were anticipating nine to 10 inches of rain.
Georgia Emergency Management Agency meteorologist Will Lanxton says storm surge will likely be limited by the storm’s speed, but there could be minor to moderate flooding around Savannah at high tide Wednesday evening.
In South Carolina, Gov. Henry McMaster said for the time being that no state officers would be closed and there would be no mandatory evacuation.
“This is not as bad as some we’ve seen,” said McMaster, who has ordered at least three coastal evacuations since taking office in 2017.
FLORIDA HURRICANE IDALIA TRACKER: LIVE FUTURE PATH, WATCHES, WARNINGS, SPAGHETTI MODELS AND MORE
He said the state is ready to respond if the storm is worse than anticipated – and he encouraged people to stay home.
Flooding could be the state’s biggest threat. Wednesday evening’s high tide in Charleston Harbor is forecast to be nearly 9 feet above normal sea level or about 3 feet above normal high tide.
The city opened parking garages so people could park well above ground and gathered barricades…
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