hope, that this will not just be a price for medicare, but that it will be a price that ensures use as well. >> neera tanden, they should come to. that come back anytime. that is all in on this tuesday s well. good to be with you this early morning hour. i'm france isrivera and we're bringing you breaking news coverage of hurricane idalia right now barrelling towards florida. you're looking at pictures from cedar key, florida. it's now a category 3 storm with maximum sustained winds of 120 miles an hour. now it's expected to make landfall on florida's west coast

bringing with a at least 134 mile per hour wind gusts. authorities are warning of, quote, catastrophic storm surge and destructive winds when the hurricane moves ashore the next couple of hours. most of florida's "the washington post" coast is at risk of severe flooding and storm surges with some forecasted to reach as high as 16 feet in some areas. the national weather service is calling idalia is an unprecedented event. and here's governor desantis late yesterday on the storm. >> you've really got to go back to the late 1800s to find a storm of this magnitude that will enter where this one looks like it's going to enter tomorrow. so we don't really have a historical analog in anybody's memory, so it's likely to cause a lot of damage. >> let's turn to nbc news correspondent jay gray in florida with more. talk about what the conditions are now and what the biggest concern has been. >> reporter: yeah, and i think

the governor there makes a good point. this is not an area used to dealing with severe conditions. right now a bit of a break. what we've seen is the outer bands of the storm moving through. so we'll get heavy rain at times and then a bit of break like we're experiencing right now. it's going to continue to grow. we're going to see the wind pick up dramatically and no breaks in that rain. once we get into the main part of this storm, it's going to be constant driving rain with those heavy winds. we'll see the hurricane force winds here in gainesville, which is removed from the shoreline. this is massive storm as you talked about. it is still growing and gaining strength, which is a big concern. 5,500 national guard troops have been deployed into the state and key areas to try and help once this thing moves through. we have all the power companies that have their assets in place as well. they've moved to higher ground

and can't get in. if there's anything this storm continues to move at a rather quick pace, 15, 16 miles an our. that's the hope it won't linger and get through pretty quickly. right now a beautiful early morning and we know that's going to change dramatically over the next several hours. >> certainly. jay gray, thank you for the update. michelle, we've talked about this. there's so many elements in making this such a behemoth storm. >> 100%. and it's only getting more difficult. we're looking at winds 120 miles per hour. what is nice the national hurricane center is giving these updates every hour. so we're seeing this number grow every single hour. it's a short bet we're going to make it to landfall as a

category 4 storm. either way we're looking at destructive winds, life threatening storm surge. it's moving faster just as jay said. right now it's 90 miles west north west of cedar key, florida. we're already seeing reports of power outages, sea walls being breached, roads getting flooded. we're expecting that landfall early this morning so maybe 7:00, 8:00 this morning we're going to keep updating you on that. all at all these tropical alerts, 18 million people impacted. we have hurricane warnings, we have tropical storm warnings all into the portions of of the carolinas as well because we're expecting some flooding as well, expecting some storm surge. let's talk about this tract. right now a major hurricane as expected. it's in the gulf. it's deep down warm as well, and as we go throughout time here around 8:00 this morning making

landfall somewhere around the big bend of florida as a cat 4 storm. that means we're going to see some really destructive winds. we're going to see some life threatening catastrophic storm surge. up to 15 feet in some spots. that is unsurvivable. that's a wall of water moving over dry land. then it's going to keep its strength as it goes throughout the state of georgia. it's going to weaken as it goes over land, could see some tornados with that, and then it's going to skirt across the carolinas. still seeing the chance for storm surge as well and flooding ranges coinciding. life threatening catastrophing i know those are big words. we're looking at historic storm surge and surge accompanied by large and destructive winds as well. you need to heed any warnings in

these areas. look at these areas. 7 to 16 feet of storm surge. that is a wall of water moving over dry land. you cannot outrun that. and storm surge in the south as well, and carolinas 2 to 4 feet in terms of storm surge. that's dangerous as well. we're not just talking today, we're talking tomorrow as well. damaging wind. we're going to see those numbers increase and also tomorrow it's hot in this portion of the state, so that's going to bring some problems in terms of air-conditioning. some communication issues as well. some roads are going to be impassable from trees falling. and some of these numbers are so high. horseshoe shoe beach looking at 91 miles per hour, and that landfalling we're going to see destructive winds. in terms of the rain, we're going to see flooding rains. as jay mentioned it's moving fast. that's going to keep those double digits down in most spots

except where it makes landfall. we're looking at flood watches. where you see those darker colors that's where we're expecting the highest amounts of road. we're going to see roads being impassable in some spots. flas flooding is super dangerous if you're out and about. you need to stay indoors. hope fall you have a hurricane plan in place already. i mentioned those st. inches of rain, flood watch extends from florida all the way to north carolina, and that's because we're coinciding with the high tide that goes with the king moon that is out there. in terms of tornados, this is always a problem when it comes to landfalling tornados. we have a tornado watch in place through 6:00 in most of florida. a good part of florida we had some tornado warnings yesterday. these are quick spin outs. they're really hard to see when you have that rain coming down. most common in the front quadrant.

there's a couple reasons for. that's where the winds are moving the fast, and when you see that and makes the impact with that, that's when you get that spin. so that tornado risk is going to move north. right now i mention the tornado watches through portions of of florida. we're going to see that extend. later on tonight feeling those impacts in portions of of the carolinas and before tomorrow morning we have a cold front going to sweep it through off the coast tomorrow but looking at dangerous conditions tomorrow. that's one player out there. we're also looking at an active tropics here. this tells you we're right for development. we're in the gulf right now in terms of idelia but looking at franklin. these two could interact a bit. as we go throughout time here looking at really gusty winds west of bermuda. francis? >> michelle, that is so tough

when you think about it that all the energy here that idelia has, all the elements of the tornados, the storm surge, and franklin here and even more eenergy, and it's just astounding the words we're using. you said unsurvivalable, catastrophic is what we're hearing. >> big words. >> big words for a very big storm. michelle, thank you for the update. we'll check in with you in a little bit as well. joining me now is florida former emergency management director for broward county and miami-dade. chuck, i appreciate you being with me this morning. let's start with this, those very worries astounding when it comes to describing this storm. you have evacuation orders here being called across 30 counties in florida but yet we see it time and time again with these storms people who say i have a business, a home, i've got tastay, i've done it in the past. what do people who decide to ride out this storm specifically

this one need to know? >> i expect it to be relatively bad especially if the storm gets up to category 4. that's the problem people decide not to go again the second time because they couldn't get back the first time, so that's a concern. but their houses not that important, their homes are not that important, but the fact that's a good thing if they did evacuate in a timely fashion. >> chuck, how about those who have not as we heard? in some cases we understand it's too late now to start evacuations. what is your message to them? >> well, back in 1992 with hurricane andrew i was in a well-built category 5 or category 4 rated building, and i was pretty much nervous the whole time because when it was really bad i think people stay there even if their homes are

protected with the hurricane resistant windows and everything else they should have, it's a scary position to be in. and anything goes wrong pretty quickly if they lose a window, lose a roof, they're in big trouble. >> based on what's being forecasted here, what sort of preparations do you expect them to be making on the ground ahead of this storm making landfall especially when we're hearing some of the surge here may be considered unsurvivable? >> well, people that are able to and for the next couple of hours should be evacuating not under a wind advisory now. it's a very, very dangerous time if they leave too late. they struggle on the road if they leave too early. my suggestion people in the direct line should have left already. if not, they need to make some decisions about when and follow

very closely what your local emergency managers are saying because they're the best ones on the ground and know what's going on. >> given that this is, you know, a hurricane and this strength has never hit this part of florida, are they prepared on the ground for what's coming their way? >> well, usually people on the coast have taken some good steps to make sure their property is protected. they don't want to go in and have to repair every time or rebuild it, but i do know the state's well prepared. the governor has been on the air for days now giving the warnings and coordinating a big effort. i do know my friends from south florida with one of the search and rescue teams they're in tallahassee now and ready to deploy, and these are bunch of hardworking firefighters and police officer and the like ready to go in and help out

whenever they can. >> and we're hoping they all are safe in doing so in this massive effort in preparing for what's to come. chuck, before you go. lessons learned. you've been here, i've been here, lessons learned from past storms, past hurricanes that can be applied this time around that could be the difference between life or death. >> yeah, those people who had their plans who have executed them properly should be in good shape. other people who have decided to stay i'm really concerned about them. they're going to have to ride it out and going to have to be a scary proposition over the next several hours. >> all right, chuck, landza, thank you. i appreciate it. be sure to stick here on msnbc and you'll come back and give us more perspective as we continue our live coverage of hurricane

idalia. you're watching msnbc. ricane idalia you're watching msnbc.

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we continue our breaking coverage now. hurricane idalia is intensifying as it lashes florida's coast with wind and rain. it's set to make landfall in the coming hours as a daurjs category 4. some are saying the storm surge

will not be survivable in some areas. the storm has winds of 120 miles per hour and it's moving north at 15 miles per hour. some authorities say it may be too late for people in the strike zone to leave. i want to bring in correspondent marissa with more. talk about how conditions are where you are at this hour. >> reporter: this is tampa bay to the left of me. over to here is davis island. this is the region's only level one trauma center. as you can see this is an area that is prone to flooding. anyone who's from the tampa area might be watching and saying, oh, this happens all the time, but that is exactly why this area is so vuminable to surges. this is why this area is eso vulnerable to flooding. so this level one trauma center over to my left has put up what's called an aqua fence. these barriers are supposed to

protect this hospital from upwards of 15 feet of storm surge. that's important. because this is a place where if anyone has an any injuries, we're talking serious injuries from anything hurricane or otherwise, that is where they would go so it's important to protect this area. tampa, this zone i'm in is called zone "a." this is under mandatory evacuation. this hospital of course staying open during the storm. but all these areas considered low lying or somehow otherwise vulnerable to flooding, again, this is barely seeing any rain. you can see how much of this water has already come up over the barrier there, so there's a big concern about depending how much rain this area gets. even yesterday we only had about 15 minutes of rain and we were seeing flooded streets. that's the biggest concern here in the tampa area. we know there's one bridge called the skyway bridge that connects st. petersburg to lower tampa. that has been closed down

because it wind miles per hour upwards of 50 miles per hour. that is not a big surprise. the skyway bridge is quite high off the water so this happens often, but still these are the types of conditions we're seeing right now. so far so good for the tampa area, but if they see more rain, that is the thing they're most susceptible to. they're not expecting those high intense winds, but the storm surge was the biggest concern. they evacuated those most vulnerable areas, and of course that's what everyone here is keeping an eye on. back to you. >> the optimistic part here is this storm is not expected to linger so at least it will be moving on its way. talk about where you are. we understand that level one trauma center right behind you, they're ready to take in people who need medical attention. with that flooding behind you talk about the logistics how that's going to happen given the fact we may see even more

flooding there behind you. how will people mobilize around that to get the help they need? >> reporter: that's a great question. this is something they come frepaired for, they have their plans in place. what makes it tricky is the this the only way in and out of davis island. that is something unfortunately we're going to see play out. we're already trying to see people get on and off davis island and they're having to speed through what is flooded street. honestly that is something we're going to have to keep an eye on. so far it's not posed a problem but that's been something everyone's been asking, those aqua fences again put up in anticipation. they say they have this all planned out and they're prepare. i have seen we talked about how this hospital was open. i've seen many hospital staff

actually watching us and waving from inside the hospital clearly staying up throughout the night ready for idelia and whatever the night brings. >> good to see that sense of togetherness and the community coming together. you've been talking about some people trying to come in and leave or at least get out there. how is that possible, how is that working given the mandatory evacuations? and the people you've spoken with are they saying, hey, are we riding it out? what's your sense how people are riding this out or evacuating? >> reporter: that's a great question because when i first got here the day before yesterday it was 50-50 in terms of what i was seeing -- it was 50-50 in terms of people were going to evacuate or worried or whether they felt relaxed about it. by yesterday i really get the sense everyone that was worried had already left because people yesterday they were biking, they were walking their dogs, they were going on jogs around here, and we're talking about in those

mandatory evacuation areas. we went to a place called clearwater beach. that is peninsula surrounded by you've got the gulf of mexico on one side, the tampa bay the other side. whole thing mawdatory evacuation zone "a." we saw so many people on the beach. we saw people ongoing for a swim. they weren't bothered. i'm a floridian, i get it. i think authorities get nervous about that because if something changes like what we saw with ian, then you have a sudden shift and then people are stranded and stuck and it's too late to help them in some cases. so that's of course a big concern. i went up to an officer in clearwater beach and i said out of curiosity when you see people that are in these areas, these mandatory evacuation areas what do you do, is this enforceable? and he says, no, this schbt something we can force people to do match at least that's in clear water. i can't speak for every jurisdiction. he said the reason they have that mandatory evacuation order

is to say we tried to get people out but ultimately that is their choice. one thing i did notice the mobile home parks in zone "a," those were largely evacuated. from what i could tell when i was walking around in the zone "a" areas, it seemed like a total ghost town. we were in one mobile home park where someone was picking up their elderly relative and it was the last person left there. when it comes to those areas higher sea level, there was a lot less concern. it seemed those were very empty looking around in the flood-prone areas. >> people taking the warnings. they're heard how powerful this storm will be. they've heard the terms catastrophic and unsurvivalable in some areas, too, so that is something they're listening. melissa parra, thank you for an update. i appreciate it.

and want to bring in now the lead public information officer for pinellas county. it's the most largely populated county in florida, we're talking about st. petersburg also. what's the latest in your county right now? what are you seeing and hearing from people i'm sure who have insisted on staying? >> so, unfortunately we have heard reports of flooding and people needsing assistance to evacuate their homes. we know there are some that feel they do not have the means or capability of evacuating, so we have seen some of that. there's been flooding along the barrier islands that is causing some concern, major parts of the barrier island roads are closed. we're seeing some power outages where traffic lights are either

not working at all or are just flashing, so that is a concern for, you know, tomorrow we hope we can bring a bunch of them back up, but we know this is going to be a recovery process for several areas within our community. we want to make sure that as people are waking up and deciding to see what the impacts are, that they're staying safe, that they're not going into those flood waters. here in florida we not only have interesting critters that can be in those flood waters, but there's things you can't see, bacteria and things that are really dangerous. so, please, please stay out of those flood waters. it doesn't take much to sweep you off your feet, and it doesn't take much to sweep your vehicle off the road. now is not the time yet, and there will come a time that we can get everybody back on the roads and back to their normal day to day, but that time is not quite yet. >> i want to ask you as we're

looking at the clock here and as identify mentioned residents are waking up and seeing what the conditions are, where this storm is headed. what is the initial priority right now for you? >> initial priority right now is for people to stay safe. stay where they are. do not go out into flood waters. we are seeing those power outages so there are downed trees. there are downed lines. now is not the time especially when it's still dark to get out your chain saw and start picking up debris. we are still in a stay safe, stay in your area posture right now. so we really want to make sure people are heeding those warnings and not going into those flood waters if they are seeing them. we also want to make sure if people are having those power outages, and i think we had over 1,300 customers that are reporting power outages, that any of those that are using generators are making sure

they're safely using those generators, keeping those generators in a well-ventilated area or outside. and also just making sure their pets are with them, taking account of their pets. we'll have availability for our animal control, our animal services to be able to call if you have a lost pet, but that won't be in until thursday, so just take account of your family, of your pets, and do not leave yet. that time will come, it's just not right now. >> i appreciate it. good luck to you. the man power and resources you have lined up to help out your community as we go through these crucial next few hours and 24 hours and possibly beyond, thank you. keep it right here on more breaking news coverage of hurricane idalia here on msnbc after the break.

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goli, taste your goals. we continue our breaking coverage. hurricane idalia expected to slam into florida's west coast as a category 4 storm. this is some video here, live video from the water on cedar key, which is about 130 miles north of tampa. you can see the rough conditions

there. cedar key in a zone expected to see storm surge of up to 16 feet. and keep in mind here 3 feet of storm surge can be considered life threatening. as we take a live look at the images you can tell the brunt of this storm. that town of cedar keys is where state troopers and law enforcement went door-to-door urging those residents of about 900 people to evacuate. after idalia makes landfall in a few hours, they are expecting this to slam and slam hard. joining us now is senior editor and environmental reporter if the sun sentinel. bill, i appreciate you being with us in this early morning hour. we talked about so many elements here in the making of this storm. what makes idalia such a dangerous hurricane? >> right now it's the surge. the winds of this strength can push quite a bit of water, and that area of the gulf is extremely susceptible to storm surge because the gulf is very shallow and flat, so that allows

the storm to push all of that shallow water up into the land. so obviously the winds are quite dangerous, but the storm surge, the span of the storm surge is much broader, a much larger area, so you might have the eye itself is not typically large, but the impact of the surge goes well south of where that eye will impact the shoreline. >> i want to ask you with your reporter/journalist hat on here in the past storms you've covered and the perspective you've brought from past storms and looking at this one, through what lens are you -- are you looking at idalia, and how are you seeing it now? as it approaches a few hours away now from that making landfall? >> it's really, you know, the atlantic basin has become so much more active in the last two weeks, over the last 14 days or

so we've had five active systems in the atlantic, in the gulf at a time. you know, you look at your map of systems and it's a connect the dots of all these storms. and you're wondering, my goodness, which one is going to click and finally one did. it's quite nerve-wracking when you live in florida to see that many systems active. so when you live in this state you also have quite a bit of sympathy for your fellow floridians who are in the path. i'm in miami so i feel fortunate tonight to not be on the gulf coast. >> yeah, but we're talking about extremely warm waters, and we've been hearing about this super blue moon as well. i want to talk about this when it comes to reflecting and the past as i'm sure you have with other storms in comparison. idalia is hitting florida just one day after the 18th00versy of hurricane katrina and the two.

year anniversary. >> they're predicting it's going to be a category 4 when it makes landfall, which is horrifying. it's fast moving so that kind of helpwise with the rainfall accumulations. last year we had ian come right into an area with very heavy population, so that was catastrophic. this would be catastrophic too, but folks have been listening to the state's warnings and evacuation warnings and hopefully things will not be as violent as they could be. >> and that is the hope for so many people, the communities, for so many of law enforcement out there, emergency response teams as well. bill kearny, i appreciate you

being with us. thank you for your time. >> thank you very much for having me. >> sure thing. and msnbc will be right back with more of our live coverage of hurricane idalia. you're watching msnbc. idalia. you're watching msnbc. how can you sleep on such a firm setting? gab, mine is almost the same as yours. almost is just another word for not as good as mine. save 50% on the sleep number limited edition smart bed. plus, free home delivery when you add a base. shop now only at sleep number.

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continuing our breaking coverage, hurricane idalia is on the move, and it is intensifying as you can see here from live pictures from cedar key.

it is expected to make landfall on florida's west coast soon as a massive category 4 storm, and it is set to strike florida's west coast right where the florida panhandle curves into the peninsula. authorities are describing the potential storm surge as catastrophic. back with me now is a former florida emergency management director for broward county and miami-dade. glad to have you back with us, again, chuck. we're talking about this and saying, you know, other emergency management personnel are saying when it comes to this storm and you're trying to compare it to others, don't because you won't be able to. given that what would you say are the other top priorities as we wait for the hurricane to make landfall? >> for those involved right now, the previous person on was talking about how they're getting a lot of calls to 911. those will continue. the people that are there, unable to get out of their homes calling 911 they'll have to wait

until the storm completely passes and the roads clear and ems and police can get there. my suggestion is people need to be ready for a real bad evening. this is a catastrophic, damage causing storm. we've seen them before, but this is a real bad grade for these hurricanes especially during this time of the hurricane season. there's nowhere them to go into the gulf, texas, florida, mississippi along the coast there. people who live there should be aware of the possible dangers but sometimes they're not. new residents and people make it really difficult for us in the emergency management business. >> how do you go about managing that when it comes to deploying your resources, man power, assets, when right now it's just kind of this we've got to ride it out, we've got to sit tight, be safe before we can help you.

so how do you manage who and when you help at any given time when that time comes? >> well, we do what's called triage. it's a french word for sorting, and we do that early on. we decide what's our number one, number two priorities. i know our friends in tallahassee right now who are from florida search and rescue teams wanted to, and they're in the heart of tallahassee which is pretty close to where this storm is going to come to pretty hard and fast. we used to stay in on the edge of the storm or work out of the edge of the storm maybe stay out of orlando. the problem is getting into a site that's been hit by category 4 is very, very difficult. we have our people predeployed pretty darn close to the center of the action, and makes it dangerous for us but makes it

easier for us to get out when the storm passes merchandise. >> i'm sure a lot of your job is anticipation, anticipating what will happen. what do you anticipate the biggest challenge to be in the hours to come? >> there's tons of challenges. one is getting into the area, identifying who needs help, sorting out this group, the triage that's required which is sort of difficult because there were calls to say my house was destroyed, we're in the worst shape possible and there's no objective view what they're talking about, so you have to get some people out there to do damage assessment. they don't necessarily know what heavily damaged is or destroyed, so for us we have to focus on what the priorities are going to be, and that's going to be clearing the rooms, getting to the core of people identified as being in the most danger and imminent danger and go out there and take care of them as quickly

as we can. >> it's going to be a massive undertaking for you and other personnel. chuck lanza, thank you so much for your perspective. i want to turn to michelle grossman. here we're literally an hour or two away. >> we're looking at strengthening. we're starting to see those numbers continue to go up. it's intensifying. we're looking at winds 125 miles per hour. category 4 storm is 130. we're getting close to that. it's moving at 17 miles per hour. that is quick and we're not expecting double digits in most spots because it is a quick mover. we could see 12 inches at landfall in some spots of the big bend. you can see those outer rain bands bringingthality heavy rainfall already. we have reports of sea walls being breached, roads being

flooded, power outages already. we do expect landfall by 8:00 this morning. 18 million people under tropical alerts. yes, we'll see that storm surge along the coast of georgia, north carolina and south carolina. here's the track for you, wright now a major hurricane, looking at winds 125 miles per hour. in the next couple of hours see that grow into a category 4 storm in the big bend of florida. so we're expecting winds 130 miles per hour and that will cause tremendous storm surge. again, we're using words like life threatening, catastrophic. that's coming from the national hurricane center. hopefully you heeded the warnings. it's going to move over land, that's going to weaken it but

it's going to take a while to weaken and then see problems moving through georgia, north carolina, south carolina. with the high tide it's going to bring the tide up as well so the combination of the two will create dangerous storm surge along the coastline as well. this is the number one killer when it comes to a tropical system and something that needs to be taken seriously. storm surge, what is it? it's a sea wall of warm-water going over dry land. 7 to 16 where you see that purple cedar key you're in on that. the big bend of florida we're looking at catastrophic storm surge and could see really large waves as well. carolina coast still dangerous. look at 2 to 4, 1 to 3 near the carolina beach, myrtle beach. we'll be watching tonight early

tomorrow into the carolina coast. winds destructive 130 mile per hour winds especially in that north east quadrant. if you're in that area we're looking at power outages. we're looking at widespread power outages and communication issues and this could last for days even week. i saw that verbiage out of the national hurricane center as well. trees coming down, also bridges compromised. we're looking at wind speeds from 50, 60, even up to 91 miles per hour in horseshoe shoe beach. this is going to be a big problem when it comes to winds. rain with tropical systems it's going to bring a lot of rain. we're still expecting double digits in the big bend when it makes landfall. look at the dark colors, you don't see that often. heavy rain north carolina into south carolina. where you see the reds, that's

whether we're expecting the heaviest amounts of rain. also looking at the chance for flash flooding especially where you see the pink. that your moderate rainfall. francis, this is something big to watch. >> it's so much to take in and so many considerations what can be threatening to see many people. appreciate the break down, thank you. keep it right here. we're continuing our breaking news coverage of hurricane idalia. you're watching msnbc. idalia you're watching msnbc. detect this: living with hiv, i learned that i can stay undetectable with fewer medicines. that's why i switched to dovato. dovato is a complete hiv treatment for some adults. no other complete hiv pill uses fewer medicines to help keep you undetectable than dovato. detect this: most hiv pills contain 3 or 4 medicines. dovato is as effective with just 2. if you have hepatitis b, don't stop dovato without talking to your doctor. don't take dovato if you're allergic to its ingredients

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a life and death situation is unfolding in florida at this very moment. hurricane idalia expected to make landfall in just a few hours as a dangerous category 4 storm. we are expecting an update at the top of the hour from the national hurricane center, and we'll bring you those details. i want to bring in now president and ceo at feeding tampa bay, jim nance. jim, thank you for being with us. we take a live look here at cedar key, and you can see how strong the wind is. actually, we don't have jim with us here. but as we take a live look here at cedar key where we know they've prepared this community for what's to come, a community of about 900 residents where state troopers went door-to-door on that island telling residents

they must leave. now, this is community that could be entirely cut off as the life threatening storm surge hits the state. so this storm is intensifying quickly. authorities are saying this cannot compare to past storms calling it a once in a lifetime event, an unprecedented storm with the storm surge expected as high as 16 feet and considering 3 feet could be considered as life threatening as well. we tornados possible, winds, flooding, the dangerous storm surge with mandatory evacuations for most of the gulf coast with tampa bay and 49 counties under a state of emergency. we continue our coverage here on msnbc throughout the morning and day. i'm francis rivera. thank you so much for watching. stay with msnbc all day, and stay safe.

this is crunch time right now. we're going to get hit with a major hurricane. if you're there when that hits, it's going to be difficult to survive that. >> it's critical the people in the path of this storm are also prepared. very few people can survive being in the path of major storm surge, and this storm will be deadly if we don't get out of harms way and take it seriously. >> hurricane idalia set to make landfall about one hour from