The National Hurricane Center said late Tuesday morning that models indicate Hurricane Idalia will make landfall in the area of Apalachee Bay, which is near Tallahassee in the northeast Gulf of Mexico.
“Confidence is increasing that Idalia will reach the coast of Florida adjacent to Apalachee Bay Wednesday morning, with all of the reliable deterministic track models honed in on that area,” the hurricane center said in an advisory. A hurricane warning was in effect from Longboat Key to Indian Pass in Gulf County.
“There is the potential for destructive life-threatening winds where the core of Idalia moves onshore in the Big Bend region of Florida, with hurricane conditions expected elsewhere in portions of the hurricane warning area along the Florida Gulf Coast,” the advisory said.
“Strong winds will also spread inland across portions of northern Florida and southern Georgia near the track of the center of Idalia where hurricane warnings are in effect. Residents in these areas should be prepared for long-duration power outages.”
The hurricane center also pointed to potentially “catastrophic impacts” of storm surge between the Aucilla River, which is southeast of Tallahassee, and Yankeetown in Levy County.
