"We have multiple trees down, debris in the roads, do not come," posted the fire and rescue department in Cedar Key, where a tide gauge measured the storm surge at 6.8 feet , submerging most of the downtown."We have propane tanks blowing up all over the island."
In Tallahassee, Florida's capital city, the power went out well before the center of the storm arrived. "For those who have chosen to remain on the beaches despite the mandatory evacuation order, please restrict your water and toilet usage," the city of Clearwater posted."Due to flooding, the city's lift stations and stormwater system are under strain."
The National Weather Service in Tallahassee called Idalia"an unprecedented event" since no major hurricanes on record have ever passed through the bay abutting the Big Bend. The state, still dealing with lingering damage from last year's Hurricane Ian, feared disastrous results. Idalia had grown into a Category 2 system on Tuesday afternoon and became a Category 3 just hours earlier Wednesday before strengthening to a Category 4 and then weakening slightly to a high-end Category 3.