landfall in florida in the next few hours. nasa is releasing these images showing the sheer magnitude of the hurricane from space. idalia set to be one of the most powerful storms ever to hit that area of florida s western coast. some cities are already starting to see the early effects of the hurricane with flooding reported in pinellas county. but one of the storm s most dangerous effects won t be fully seen for hours after it makes landfall. forecasters are predicting deadly storm surges, as high as 15 feet in some areas. here is what one official told me earlier about the potential impact of idalia s storm surge. the closest we ve ever came to a storm surge like that on our coastal communities was back with hermine. we got maybe 4, 5 foot. and we re low laying in some of our communities on the post as suwannee and horseshoe. it was devastating. we had a lot of major damage to residence and structures.
Storm-weary Southwest Florida facing another potential trauma: Idalia naplesnews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from naplesnews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
panhandle. but they warn the traffic could easily move. right now, tampa would be on what they call the right side of the hurricane which is never good. the so-called dirty seen glorlgnior meteorologist r marciano leading us off tonight. reporter: tonight, thousands of families racing to prepare for idalia. in tampa, pallets of water and other supplies flying off the shelf. debra and her daughter lining up for sandbags and getting ready to evacuate. yes, i ve been here 20 years, and you don t wait. you just have to go. reporter: idalia passing through the gap between cuba and the yucatan peninsula. fueled by the warmest gulf of mexico water temps in recorded history. if it wobbles east, you re going to see more severe impacts here in the pampa bay area, so, all this is in place right now. reporter: north of tampa, up to 12 feet of storm surge expected. residents taking it seriously. cat 3 now, 105 water
tempera temperature, it will be a 5 by the time it hits us. reporter: idalia set to hit since ian. it decimated barrier islands and killed at least 150 people. david: rob yamarciano in florida tonight. we ve talked so much about the warm waters of the gulf, and i know you ve studied the track. take us through the timing here. reporter: all right, david, it s gathering strength and gathering forward speed in our direction. because of that h, hurricane warnings have been extended. the center of this, just to the west of cuba. those warm waters, that s the fuel. we expect rapid intensification la landfall wednesday morning. and then, into the carolinas, too. rain, wind, and storm surge, a big issue. especially here in this part of