August 30, 2023 - Idalia makes Florida landfall

About 4,000 to 6,000 homes were damaged in Pasco County during Hurricane Idalia, according to Pasco County Administrator Mike Carballa. 

Much of the damage occurred along the coast, and homes were inundated with water, Carballa told CNN’s Jake Tapper.

Pasco County, north of Tampa, is in Florida's Big Bend region, which was where Idalia made landfall as a Category 3 storm on Wednesday morning.

Carballa said he watched first responders switch to water rescue operations Wednesday morning because residents did not heed evacuation orders. 

Pasco County had space for 12,000 people in its shelters, according to Carballa, but the county took in around “a couple a hundred.”

Carballa said he received one report of a traffic fatality early Wednesday morning but did not have the details. 

He said that fire rescue teams were able to get everyone out that wanted to leave. 

According to Carballa, this storm was the worst in recent memory. 

Idalia continues to weaken as it moves over southeastern Georgia and is now a 70 mph tropical storm, according to the 5 p.m. ET advisory from the National Hurricane Center.

The storm will continue to bring the risk of freshwater flooding, storm surge and strong winds to portions of Georgia and the Carolinas into Thursday.

Florida’s biggest concern following Hurricane Idalia is people who do not have power, according to Kevin Guthrie, the state's director of emergency management.

There are about 250,000 “accounts” without power, he said Wednesday in an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper – and he encouraged Floridians without electricity to consider going to a shelter tonight.  

The topography in the Big Bend area, which is where Idalia made landfall, is different from in other parts of the state, and search and rescue efforts could take longer, Guthrie added.

Officials on the southeastern coast of North Carolina are preparing for the last of Hurricane Idalia to arrive Thursday morning before the storm heads off land.  

There is currently an “enhanced tornado risk” in New Hanover County, North Carolina, which is operating under a “partial Emergency Operations Center activation,” according to emergency officials. The county is home to Wilmington, Wrightsville and Carolina Beaches among other towns.

Idalia is expected to pass about 15 miles off the coast between 5 a.m. and 9 a.m. Thursday, with the worst conditions likely occurring during its closest passage to New Hanover County, between 7 a.m. and 7:30 a.m., New Hanover County Director of Emergency Management Steven Still said.

Still said officials expect “moderate wind impacts” and sustained winds of about 34 miles per hour, with peak gusts up to 40 miles per hour. Forecasters anticipate around three to 4 inches of rainfall, which will coincide with the King Tide.  

The biggest concern was visitors for the upcoming holiday weekend who may not be strong swimmers underestimating ocean currents, Still said, warning that the combined swells from Hurricane Franklin and now Idalia make for dangerous marine conditions.

Still repeatedly warned that from this point on, only experienced surfers and swimmers should be in the water. 

CNN observed dozens of surfers in the ocean at Wrightsville Beach, with single red flag warnings flying at the lifeguard stands.

All flights out of Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport have been canceled for the rest of the day, the airport posted on social media Wednesday.

The airport is still open, but no flight will be leaving, the post said.

"Passengers should continue to check with their airline for rebooking options,” the airport said. 

Hurricane Idalia is currently moving toward the Savannah area as a Category 1 storm.

Government offices for the city of Savannah will remain closed on Thursday due to weather associated with Hurricane Idalia, the city announced in a news release Wednesday. 

Emergency essential services like “public safety, sanitation, water and sewer, stormwater, park and tree, and traffic engineering will respond at full capacity as weather permits,” according to the release. 

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper urged residents to stock up on supplies and stay off flooded roads when Hurricane Idalia hits the area with heavy rainfall and localized flooding.

A state of emergency was declared Monday for the state and a tropical storm warning is in effect for the entire coast of the state, Cooper said.

He authorized the National Guard and water rescue teams are ready to deploy if needed, the governor added.

There have been reports of people looting in the aftermath of Hurricane Idalia in Steinhatchee, a village in hard-hit Taylor County, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Wednesday.

And he warned there would be consequences.

"We are not going to tolerate any looting in the aftermath of a natural disaster,” he said at a news conference, noting that he told all state personnel to protect people’s personal property.

The governor said many people who are "advocates and proponents" of the Second Amendment live in the area that includes Taylor County. After previous disasters in other parts of the state, he saw signs in people's yards that said: “You loot, we shoot."

“So I would not do it," he added.

The governor also pledged to hold people accountable “from a law enforcement perspective at a minimum.”

Hurricane Idalia roared across Florida’s Big Bend Wednesday morning as a dangerous and record-breaking Category 3 storm, leaving a deadly trail of destruction from powerful winds, pounding rain, and catastrophic storm surge.

Many organizations began preparing ahead of the storm’s arrival and are already on the ground responding to the disaster.

Learn about ways you can help support relief efforts by clicking here.

CNN Impact Your World will continue to monitor and vet ways to help and update as information comes in.