Hurricane Idalia 2023

I have been watching the past few days as this storm has been growing south of the Yucatan Peninsula, yesterday it was forecast to be a Tropical Storm here in Florida.
Today they are forecasting Category 3 in Central to Northwestern Florida with storm surge currently being predicted to be between 7-11 feet
Updates can be seen here :
Florida Disaster.org

Just a few hours ago they began to issue evacuation orders for more counties according to the governors notice which now includes a total of 46 counties under a "state of emergency", including my own.
State of Emergency
If this storm hits the Big Bend area as a CAT 3 it will be the strongest storm for the area since 1950

As someone who has been through several hurricanes I know first hand how the forecast can change quickly. Given that this storm is not yet into the Gulf or over the Warmer waters I can feel a stronger storm coming than is predicted, in this I would love to be wrong.

There is a youtube with live updates but I cant directly link due to the html format
www.youtube.com...

Here is also another great link for any wanting up to date telemetry on the storm:
Track the Tropics

As this storm progress I will provide as much information as becomes available, for as long as I possibly can. Historically there will be wide spread power outages, and DeSantis has already assured many that the linesmen are already ready being positioned to respond to any emergency power needs across the state.

I hope to be able to provide you with pictures and videos if possible (ill need to figure out how to do the video part as ive never done that before)

In the mean time, i wish everyone in Florida a safe week ahead, stay away from the coast and if you are in an evacuation zone please take shelter in advance, you can watch this video below to see why implore you to stay safe along the coast

twitter.com...

Ok...the above was the sane version, now were gonna get crazy as the hurricane hunter in me is getting giddy!!

I hope to be able to travel at times to some areas around Tampa and to the north which are about an hour away from me. Obviously this is dependent on conditions and direction of the storm but I definitely want to see the ocean, the fury of the waves and tide have always fascinated me since I was young.

Unfortunately there will be damage somewhere and I do wish everyone in the path to be safe, where ever that path may be.
Hopefully it doesn't turn to far to the east as that would bring it into the still recovering areas from hurricane Ian last year, even though that would bring the storm directly over my area.
I am inland in Central Florida, very close to Disney so flooding isn't really issue but we do usually get higher winds as we are near one of the highest points in Central Florida.

Tornadoes are a real threat as well

If you are in Florida again stay safe and get away from the coast in the evacuation zones.
Also please feel free to add any pics or info to the thread as I do have to work and wont always be free to post

I always follow hurricanes especially ones in the southeast, as I've been all over and know people in these areas. Florida I especially love the area north of Clearwater and Crescent Beach on the Atlantic coast.

this one needs to miss Tampa and hopefully miss other populated areas

I follow along on Mikes Weather page and Storm2K

www.storm2k.org...

a reply to: datguy

Ouch!

Florida has the highest homeowners insurance

The industry-funded Insurance Information Institute found that Floridians pay the highest average home insurance premium at $6,000 a year for 2023, Mark Friedlander, an institute spokesperson, told PolitiFact. That amount is 42% higher than 2022.

wusfnews.wusf.usf.edu...

That's a property tax payment for some people. Craziness.

a reply to: datguy

I’ve also lived through a few and there is just something sooo unsettling.
Yes all storms are bad and life threatening but I’ll take a blizzard over a hurricane any day!

Here's some official tracking info-graphics for posterity





National Hurricane Center

Hope you dont get an earthquake in Fl to go with.

a reply to: datguy

In swfl , waiting for another day to see if this is something to think about and if this turns into Ian 2.0 . If so I might have to get more beer.

a reply to: putnam6

if this thing does end up coming into the big bend area there is going to major inland flooding, not just coastal. The storm is just going to push all that water right into a literal corner. it will have no where to go but into the rivers, in this case the swanee and withlacoochee mainly so areas in land of those will probably see major flooding as well. so places like citrus, hernando county (just north of tampa) are going to get it from both sides, the coast and the rivers


a reply to: EternalShadow

its a rancid environment fueled by the devastation from past storms and the insurance companies trying everything they can to NOT pay the premiums, on top of bad government policies that let the companies do whatever they want.
Not to mention that lenders usually make it mandatory to have the insurance so its not like homeowners have a say unless they have paid of their mortgage.
In some areas insurance companies have flat out refused to insure some areas. The companies that are pulling out of the state are mostly owned by the banks or foreign corporations like Zurich


a reply to: JAGStorm

So much yes!!! i love and miss the snow soo much, i would rather 7-11 feet of snow over 7-11 feet of water!!!

a reply to: CoyoteAngels
www.allquakes.com...#:~:text=When%20was%20the%20latest%20earthquake,am%20(GMT%20%2D4).

The last earthquake in Florida occurred 7 hours ago: Weak mag. 2.4 earthquake - 14 km southwest of Yauco, Puerto Rico, on Monday, Aug 28, 2023 at 11:13 am (GMT -4).

Dont curse me like that. there is that prediction on the New Madrid
Shtap

a reply to: interupt42

Spoken like true Floridian
and stay safe!

a reply to: datguy

State Farm isn' taking any new customers in CA. I'm with them and they are too expensive. I should find someone else.

A truck driving by will cause a 2.4! You will be fine.

Small Storm Update :
according to the information in the Live youtube link from the OP, the storm surge has been updated to 8-12 feet in some areas.
Also reported by CBS News

U.S.
Hurricane Idalia path and timeline: When and where meteorologists project the storm will hit Florida
BY EMILY MAE CZACHOR

UPDATED ON: AUGUST 28, 2023 / 6:15 PM / CBS NEWS

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said at a news conference Monday morning that Idalia was expected to grow into at least a Category 3 hurricane before making landfall.

"Idalia is forecast to become a hurricane as it reaches the Gulf coast of Florida," the National Hurricane Center tweeted Monday afternoon. "There is a danger of life-threatening storm surge along portions of the Florida coastline."

Earlier, the National Weather Service warned, "The risk continues to increase for life-threatening storm surge and dangerous hurricane-force winds along portions of the west coast of Florida and the Florida Panhandle beginning as early as late Tuesday."

As the agency noted, storm surge watches and hurricane watches were in effect for large portions of the west coast of Florida and the Florida panhandle, from Sarasota County, between Fort Myers and Tampa, up to Franklin County near Tallahassee.

Little on edge bc my kid lives 60 miles from the center of the cone. Mid Florida. Should not be as bad but still under watch .

a reply to: datguy

I'm not going to predict anything specific about this one.

But I feel obligated to point out "I" named storms traditionally hate Florida. Idalia can join Irma, Irene, Ida, Ian, and Ingrid now. Coincidence buy seems a trend.

Expect the worst case scenario.

a reply to: datguy
I'm not convinced about Franklin path prediction. Maybe it'll interact with Idalia and at least one of them will change its path.

Here in NJ we were hammered by Hurricane Floyd (1999), tropical storm April 15, 2007, Hurricane Irene (2011), Sandy (2012), and Ida (2021), so we know just how you feel.
Sometimes the wind currents change, slow down, or simply downgrade to a tropical storm, the weather forecasters are never really sure how these things are going to react.
So I wish you all the best, stay safe!

a reply to: datguy

From the national hurricane center.

www.nhc.noaa.gov keep an eye on the site to see developtments.

originally posted by: datguy
a reply to: putnam6

if this thing does end up coming into the big bend area there is going to major inland flooding, not just coastal. The storm is just going to push all that water right into a literal corner. it will have no where to go but into the rivers, in this case the swanee and withlacoochee mainly so areas in land of those will probably see major flooding as well. so places like citrus, hernando county (just north of tampa) are going to get it from both sides, the coast and the rivers


a reply to: EternalShadow

its a rancid environment fueled by the devastation from past storms and the insurance companies trying everything they can to NOT pay the premiums, on top of bad government policies that let the companies do whatever they want.
Not to mention that lenders usually make it mandatory to have the insurance so its not like homeowners have a say unless they have paid of their mortgage.
In some areas insurance companies have flat out refused to insure some areas. The companies that are pulling out of the state are mostly owned by the banks or foreign corporations like Zurich


a reply to: JAGStorm

So much yes!!! i love and miss the snow soo much, i would rather 7-11 feet of snow over 7-11 feet of water!!!

a reply to: CoyoteAngels
www.allquakes.com...#:~:text=When%20was%20the%20latest%20earthquake,am%20(GMT%20%2D4).

The last earthquake in Florida occurred 7 hours ago: Weak mag. 2.4 earthquake - 14 km southwest of Yauco, Puerto Rico, on Monday, Aug 28, 2023 at 11:13 am (GMT -4).

Dont curse me like that. there is that prediction on the New Madrid
Shtap

a reply to: interupt42

Spoken like true Floridian
and stay safe!

Yep and Mexico Beach isn't too far away, they got drilled not too long ago. It's not going to be good for anybody in the path of this one. So many people have taken damage these last few seasons

Well this is just great...... NOT!!! My wife just came out of the hospital on Sunday and I was thinking some nice bed rest to recoup would do wonders for both of us. Apparently we both picked up a bug the week before when she was in the hospital then and I was caring for her. We both test positive for COVID, but not sure how much stock I am putting into that.

We are located just south of Tallahassee. Completely surrounded by trees in a heavily wooded area. Which is good, on one hand, because the winds tend to skip over the tops of the trees. But during really high winds, those tree tops can just snap off and come crashing down.

Not sure what we are going to do. Not feeling all that spiffy to drive anywhere, and sure as heck don't want to go anywhere that we might possibly spread COVID to others if we actually have it.

a reply to: Degradation33

don't forget ivan,

he did a pretty good number on nw fl. one of the worst things was the destruction of escamba bay bridge on I 10. backed traffic up miles for almost three years. 1 10 was a bitch then, what used to take me 20 to 25 minutes to drive to and from work took anywhere from 1 1/2 hours to 2 maybe three. reminded me of what you use to see in kommiefornia, moves a couple of feet stop for five minutes, move a couple of feet stop.

originally posted by: interupt42
a reply to: datguy

In swfl , waiting for another day to see if this is something to think about and if this turns into Ian 2.0 . If so I might have to get more beer.

if you think you need more beer, then you do. Get some.