good morning, everyone. from washington, d.c., poppy is off this week, family brown back with me on this fine wednesday. let s get started with five things to know for july 12, 2023. president biden and ukrainian president volodymyr zelenskyy set to make a major announcement about new efforts to bolster ukraine s long-term military prospects. later this morning the announcement coming. despite the agreement, however, nato has declined to offer a clear time line for ukraine to join the alliance. and severe weather from coast to coast, parts of new england are still suffering from devastating floods. while more than 50 million americans from california to texas to florida will face another round of extreme heat. and happening in just a couple of hours, fbi director christopher wray set to testify in what s expected to be, almost certain to be, a contentious hearing. wray will face questions from republicans who claim the fbi has become politicized. and new concerns afte
this is absolutely nuts. ainsley: that is new video already showing the storm s power as it brings devastating floods down it the key west area. we expect to see more of those, tossing planes around like toys. todd: we have team coverage now. fox weather correspondent nicole valdez. we start with fox weather correspondent robert ray in fort myers. robert? ainsley: trouble obviously with his microphone. we can t hear you, robert. right now, it does look bad. fox weather correspondent nicole valdez continues our coverage, she is in tampa. we are only starting to rapidly see conditions deteriorating here for the tampa bay area as hurricane ian, that now category 4 storm. you just mentioned with winds at 155 miles per hour. it is teetering on a category 5 storm. you heard governor ron desantis there saying our emergency management officials are planning and preparing to see a category 5 storm. that is how seriously they are taking this situation knowing what we could se
Does it feel like you are standing in a bath tub? to your point, indeed. the gulf of mexico is running high 80 fair height. sometimes even 90 degrees up and down this gulf coast all the way up from naples up to here. it does not feel like it s bathtub water at this point. but that s because it s a mix. so the water that s rushing in from the gulf is now being mixed with the water from above, the precip coming. it s just not as warm. but i will say you can taste the salt, that s for sure. when the water comes in and it laps up and it comes up, got it right on your lips. it s just amazing i m this far away from that eye that s making landfall and we are still getting this kind of energy here in clearwater beach. it shows you how powerful the surge is. and i cannot even imagine what is happening on the big bend where up to 15 feet is expected and what is happening on the landfall right now.
Will get to threats. hurricane idalia is strengthening. 80-mile-an-hour winds with this particular storm, and then looking briefly at the satellite composure, and this thing is becoming more organized as the minutes wear on, and it is a concern, because it is tapping into the warm ocean waters there. is the forecast track from the national hurricane center strengthening to the category 2 by 2:00 p.m. today, and then to category 3 which is the consistent message before landfall with the rapid strengthening and intensification. i wanted to show you this, because we have been showing you how warm the waters have been in the gulf of mexico, because they are running from 2 to upwards to 4 degrees fahrenheit to where they should be above where that he were. this is beyond bathtub water, and more like hot tub water.
And breaking records day after day after day. so it s above and beyond normal by a lot. it just goes on and on with the heat index. we ve never had a string like this in recorded history. at the very least, it s uncomfortable. at the worst, it s actually deadly. reporter: the national weather service had an explicit statement. if you consider yourself in good, physical shape and do activity in peak heating days it could be dangerous. if you re looking to cool off in the atlantic ocean, we are way past bathtub water. pam, we are in hot tub territory right now. we are. the ocean, temperatures on land, you can t escape it. derek van dam, thank you. reporter: right. and now to the northeast where more rain is in the forecast for flood ravaged communities in vermont. first responders have already pulled dozens of people to safety from the high waters,