Search and rescue, national guard and coastguard are activepublished at 17:42 BST 30 August 2023
Governor DeSantis says search and rescue teams are clearing roads of debris.
The national guard unit and the coastguard are also active, he confirms.
Summary
Tropical storm Idalia is crossing into Georgia, bringing powerful winds and potentially life-threatening conditions
President Joe Biden warns Idalia, which hit Florida as a Category 3 hurricane, is "still very dangerous"
More than 440,000 people are without power in Florida and Georgia
There are no confirmed fatalities from the storm – however Florida Highway Patrol has reported the deaths of two drivers in crashes caused by rainy conditions
Some areas of Florida have been flooded, and the National Hurricane Center warns storm surge still threatens coastal areas
The head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency says Idalia is the strongest storm to hit this part of Florida in more than 100 years
You can watch live pictures from around Florida by clicking the play button at the top of this page
Search and rescue, national guard and coastguard are activepublished at 17:42 BST 30 August 2023
Airports to reopenpublished at 17:41 BST 30 August 2023
Governor DeSantis says Tampa Airport is going to reopen for incoming flights at 16:00 Eastern Time (21:00 BST). By 03:00 Eastern Time (08:00 BST) Thursday it will be fully reopened.
Gainesville Airport will reopen tonight US time and Tallahassee Airport will reopen first thing in the morning Thursday.
No confirmed fatalities from stormpublished at 17:37 BST 30 August 2023
Image source, ReutersFlorida Governor Ron DeSantis has now said there are "no confirmed fatalities" from the Hurricane Idalia so far.
Earlier today, the Florida Highway Patrol reported that two people were killed in road accidents during the storm.
Stay with us for more updates.
Ron DeSantis - quarter of a million homes without powerpublished at 17:34 BST 30 August 2023
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is now speaking to the media.
He says 262,000 homes that lost power have now had their power restored, and 250,000 homes are still without power.
Utility workers are actively working to restore power, he says.
The Florida Governor is about to give an updatepublished at 17:25 BST 30 August 2023
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is due to hold a briefing in Tallahassee, Florida, to discuss Hurricane Idalia shortly.
Stay with us as we bring you live updates.
Residents rescued by boat and some refuse to leavepublished at 16:49 BST 30 August 2023
John Sudworth
Reporting from Pasco County, FloridaHere's a look at the situation on Highway 19, on the way to the city of Hudson, in Florida's Pasco County.
Crews are also dealing with a few small fires and lots of emergency trucks are on the highway.
Image caption, The fire chief at the scene tells me that some residents have been brought out by boat
Image caption, Others are still refusing to leave, which is a concern as emergency teams expect the tide to rise further still
Image caption, Rescue vehicles bring people out of trapped homes
Idalia crossing into southern Georgia - hurricane centrepublished at 16:33 BST 30 August 2023
The centre of Hurricane Idalia is crossing into southern Georgia, and maximum sustained winds have decreased to 90mph (150km/h) according to the National Hurricane Center.
The storm is now about 15 miles (20km) south of the city of Valdosta in Georgia, it says.
High water levels are continuing along the Gulf Coast, it adds.
River level rises from 1ft to 8ft in an hourpublished at 16:27 BST 30 August 2023
The National Weather Service's local office in Florida's capital, Tallahassee, says that a river gauge in the town of Steinhatchee rose from 1ft to 8ft (2.4m), external in the space of one hour as Idalia struck Florida.
"When we say that the storm surge threat would increase rapidly, this is what we meant," the office said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
A separate post from the NWS's Tampa Bay office said that surge concerns in impacted areas of Florida's west coast will continue even as the storm pulls away from the area.
"Highest surge will be around the time of high tide this afternoon," it said. "Remain alert."
Flurry of emergency services activity in Hudsonpublished at 16:15 BST 30 August 2023
Mike Wendling
Reporting from Hudson
Image caption, Crews work to restore power to the area
This is the scene in Hudson, Florida where crews are working to restore power and emergency services are attempting to rescue people who didn’t evacuate.
This is the main focus of activity in Pasco county, north of Tampa.
Sheriffs here say they have pulled about 40 people out of the water, and an unknown number remain in the low-lying costal neighbourhood.
Residents have a foot or two of water in their homes and the authorities are worried about a potentially larger storm surge later today.
Media caption, This woman was among those who have been evacuated
Storm-related death confirmed in Florida's Pasco Countypublished at 16:04 BST 30 August 2023
We've just heard that one death has been attributed to the conditions caused by Hurricane Idalia.
According to Florida's Highway Patrol, a driver in Pasco County - north of Tampa - lost control of his vehicle and struck a tree this morning at about 0615 local time (1115 BST).
The driver's injuries were fatal.
So far, no other deaths have been confirmed, although that may change as the scale of the destruction becomes more clear throughout the course of the day.
Stay with us for more updates.
Idalia sees more than 900 flights cancelledpublished at 15:55 BST 30 August 2023
More than 900 flights were cancelled by US airlines as a result of Hurricane Idalia as of this afternoon, according to flight tracking website FlightAware.
Several airlines including Southwest, Delta, JetBlue, American Airlines and United cancelled flights and issued advice to passengers to make changes to travel plans.
Tampa International Airport and other regional airports suspended commercial operations on Tuesday ahead of Idalia's arrival.
In pictures: Floridians venture out into flooded streetspublished at 15:45 BST 30 August 2023
Residents of Tarpon Springs, a town on Florida's west coast, have emerged from their homes to deep floodwaters.
Some are fleeing, taking only what they can carry, while others in the coastal community are out on watercraft taking stock of the damage.
Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Resident Makatla Ritchter wades through floodwaters, having evacuated her home
Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Some people are out in kayaks as authorities have warned it is too dangerous to drive through floodwaters
Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Another resident floats by in a canoe, checking in on neighbours
Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Floodwaters haven't reached Ken's apartment yet, but there are warning of storm surges to come
'There's no help coming': Cedar Key resident says islands are cut offpublished at 15:34 BST 30 August 2023
Image source, Michael Bobbit/ FacebookMichael Bobbit, a resident of Florida's Cedar Key islands, sent his loved ones away before the hurricane hit - but he has chosen to stay behind.
"I'm still here now," he told the BBC.
"Our entire downtown is underwater. Part of a whole hotel just broke apart and went into the Gulf," Bobbit said. "It's like the Gulf is trying to swallow us up."
Winds ranging from 40-50mph (64-80km/h) caused storm surges in the area that have toppled trees, submerged homes and flooded roads.
In the days ahead of the hurricane, officials had warned residents to evacuate, but Bobbit said he couldn't leave the island - and the people - he loves behind.
"It was never a question about whether I would stay or go," Bobbit said.
Cedar Key is connected to mainland Florida by a series of bridges, which Bobbit said are now all "completely underwater".
"There's no help coming," he said. "It'll be days before trucks can even make it to the island."
For now, Bobbit is sheltering on the second floor of his two-story home. He said he has no electricity, but he does have a generator - and a boat.
"I'm gonna get a motorboat here in the water shortly, so I can get to some of the outlying areas of the island to make sure that there are no old people stuck or in need of help," he said.
Read more: 'Downtown Cedar Keys is under water'
Tampa police: Don't drive through flooded streetspublished at 15:21 BST 30 August 2023
Image source, City of TampaPolice in Tampa - Florida's third largest city - say they're assessing the damage and flooding caused so far from Hurricane Idalia.
Officials are urging civilians not to drive through flood water.
"This is why you don’t drive through flooded streets. Even a few inches of water can cause you to lose control of your vehicle and salt water can damage your engine," the City of Tampa posted on social media., external
The police department says they are preparing for the storm surge and high tides still to come.
Image source, ReutersImage caption, Waves crashed against the seawall in Tampa Bay, Florida
What's the latest?published at 15:13 BST 30 August 2023
Image source, ReutersIf you're just joining us or need a re-cap here's what you need to know about Hurricane Idalia.
- Idalia made landfall near the town of Keaton Beach, in Florida's Big Bend area, at around 07:45 local time (12:45 BST)
- Winds are now near 105mph (165km/h) - down from 125mph before Idalia made landfall
- A "catastrophic storm surge" is happening along the coast of the Florida Big Bend, with "damaging winds spreading inland over northern Florida", the National Hurricane Center said
- Over 240,000 people are without power in Florida, according to statistics from PowerOutage.US
- Earlier, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis warned residents to shelter in place and take particular care of downed power lines
Reports people are trapped in their homespublished at 15:04 BST 30 August 2023
John Sudworth
Reporting from Pasco County, FloridaWe're on the way to the city of Hudson, in Florida's Pasco County, a little north of the city of Tampa on the Gulf coast
There are reports of people trapped in their homes there.
I've spoken to one local businessman, at a paint shop just east of Highway 19, who told me from the roadway - looking west towards the coast - he could see the emergency services carrying out rescues.
Almost the whole area on that side of the highway is in Evacuation Zone A, so residents would have been warned long in advance there was a serious risk to life if they remained.
Number of Floridians without power jumps to 265,000published at 15:00 BST 30 August 2023
The number of people without power in Florida has shot up to nearly 265,000 as of 0942 local time (1442 BST), according to statistics from PowerOutage.us.
The data - which is updated regularly - shows that significant portions of the population of Florida's Big Bend area are without power.
In Wakulla County, for example, about 12,000 people out of 17,700 customers tracked by the website are currently without power - nearly 70%.
To the east, in Taylor County, about 10,300 of 13,770 customers tracked have been left without power, about 78%.
The greatest percentage of homes without power is in Suwannee County, an inland area in Florida's north.
Here, about 23,000 out of 24,800 homes are without power - or about 92% of the population.
'People sit in the dark for months after a hurricane'published at 14:44 BST 30 August 2023
Helena Humphrey
Reporting from Jacksonville, Florida“I’ve seen people sit in the dark for months after a hurricane,” one electricity linesman tells me in Jacksonville, Florida.
Up to 40,000 are on standby to move in once the storm passes to restore power.
“Category three usually means three weeks of work, category four usually means four,” says one worker, who says he’s “lost count” of the storms he’s worked in.
“We’re rocking and ready, but the damage can be random.”
Flooding from the surge can also pose an additional risk in the rare case it carries electric current.
“If you don’t know what the wire is, don’t touch it - don’t play Russian roulette. There's the potential for so much tragedy."
What is Florida's Big Bend like?published at 14:36 BST 30 August 2023
Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Residents in Florida's Big Bend area were warned to evacuate ahead of idalia.
Hurricane Idalia is expected to do the most damage in Florida's Big Bend, the area of the state in which its Gulf Coast "panhandle" curves south into the western coast of the Florida Peninsula.
Largely covered by forest and a marshy coastline, the Big Bend is relatively sparsely populated when compared with the rest of Florida.
According to local media reports, the area's counties account for just 3% of the state's population.
Its relative isolation is a source of pride for many in the area.
A website dedicated to the Big Bend, Florida Nature Coast, proudly boasts that residents of the area "think having a good time involves more than expensive restaurants, theme parks, and crowded beaches".
On one hand, officials - including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis - have expressed relief that the hurricane has bypassed some of the state's populated areas which were devastated by Hurricane Ian last year.
On the other hand, the isolation and relative underdevelopment may create dangers for some residents and complicate response efforts.
Residents of mobile homes in the Big Bend area, for example, have been warned of potentially devastating consequences of not evacuating as Idalia strikes.
Idalia winds drop to category 2 speedspublished at 14:30 BST 30 August 2023
Image source, Getty ImagesThe National Hurricane Center have just put out another update saying Idalia's maximum sustained winds are now near 110mph (175km/h) - down from 125 mph before it made landfall.
This puts it at the high end of the range of a category 2 hurricane, which on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale is a storm with sustained winds of 96-110 mph (154-177 km/h).
The NHC adds that there is currently "catastrophic storm surge occurring along the coast of the Florida Big Bend and damaging winds spreading inland over northern Florida".