Guanimar, Cuba

Western Cuba was lashed by tropical storm Idalia on Tuesday (August 29) and is likely to turn into a major hurricane as it moves towards the Gulf Coast in Florida, where evacuations have been ordered by the officials and residents have been appealed to start preparing for its expected landfall on Wednesday.

Idalia was churning around 80 miles (130 km) off Cuba's western tip as it barreled north, carrying the maximum sustained winds of 70 mph (112 kph), said the Miami-based National Hurricane Centre in its latest advisory.

The growing intensity of the storm and its northerly track has placed around 14 million Floridians under the threat of a hurricane, with warnings of tropical storm issued along the Gulf of Mexico.

Authorities stated that the chief hazard that the storm would pose to human life would be the increased height of seawater which may be driven into inundating low-lying coastal areas by high winds.

Advertisment

ALSO READ | Tropical Storm Idalia to strengthen into hurricane and make landfall in Florida, say US forecasters

Storm surge warnings were put up across hundreds of miles of Gulf Coast shoreline, starting from the Sarasota area north through Tampa and leading to the sport-fishing haven of Indian Pass at the western end of Apalachicola Bay.

"Buckle up for this one," said Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, in a press conference on Monday afternoon, adding that he had already discussed the situation with director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Deanne Criswell and US President Joe Biden.

Advertisment

"Do what you got to do. You still have time today. You have time for most of tomorrow," he added, appealing to Floridians to fully prepare for the dangerous situation ahead.

Cubans rush to evacuate coastal towns

Cubans hurriedly evacuated coastal towns, tied down fishing boats and emptied batten-down homes as Idalia reached the western end of the island on Monday.

Advertisment

The small fishing village of Guanimar was swamped by chocolate-brown floodwaters by mid-afternoon.

Residents were carried to higher grounds using decades-old buses, which had missing windows and floorboards, as winds howled and rattled the tin roofs of the houses and slammed fishing boats stranded in the mangroves.

"We've had two days of rain already," stated resident Yadira Alvarez, 34, as she made preparations for evacuating her five children. "We try to prepare, but no matter what we do everything will be soaked,” she added.

WATCH | Hurricane Hilary reduced from category 4 to category 2 storm

Mandatory evacuations in multiple Florida counties

Voluntary and mandatory evacuations were issued in multiple counties of Florida on Monday morning, which DeSantis stated is likely to expand. “There are going to be evacuation orders issued in all these Gulf Coast counties in the A and B zones (and) all the barrier islands places that are low-lying on the coast,” DeSantis stated.

The government ordered mandatory evacuations for Pasco, Manatee, Hernando, Taylor, Pinellas, Hillsborough, Sarasota and Citrus counties for vulnerable structures and low-lying coastal areas. The evacuation orders issued in Hillsborough County also included parts of the Tampa area.

“If and when the Governor issues an evacuation order, that means your life is in danger, hear those warnings,” warned Tampa Police Chief Lee Bercaw.

(With inputs from agencies)

You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

WATCH WION LIVE HERE