Idalia’s impact on the Southeastern coastal states is far from over.

Idalia made landfall on Wednesday morning as a formidable Category 3 hurricane near Keaton Beach on Florida’s Gulf Coast, close to Tallahassee.

As it swiftly intensified while crossing the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, briefly reaching Category 4 status, the hurricane struck Florida’s Big Bend region with maximum sustained winds of 125 miles per hour.

As Idalia traversed northern Florida into Georgia, its strength waned, resulting in a downgrade to a tropical storm by late Wednesday afternoon, CBS News reported.

The storm progressed into South Carolina on Wednesday night and is expected to continue its path into North Carolina, according to meteorologists’ forecasts, with the likelihood of staying off the North Carolina coast on Thursday before eventually moving out to sea.

Written by staff