sorry, we're trying to get bill weir up in steinhatchee.ou are a florida native. you've seen storms like this as they hit miami. that feels like a more common occurrence than what's happening here. no storm this powerful has ever hit the big bend area and they're feeling it now. >> absolutely. and, governor, desantis was talking about the unprecedented nature of this kind of storm, a storm of this magnitude hitting that area. of course, the infrastructure for hurricanes in south florida far more developed because storms of this size are far more common there. as you were driving to tallahassee yesterday, i'm wondering what kind of preparations you saw. was there a concern that perhaps the infrastructure in this northern part of florida, the big bend area near the panhandle, was it ready for a category 3 storm? >> reporter: it's a great question. i would say there are two different stories as i drove last night -- late last night from steinhatchee where bill weir is right now to here. and steinhatchee and along the coast, they were boarding

he is live from steinhatchee.urse of the morning. what are you seeing right now on the ground? >> reporter: well, phil, we are really watching the rapid rise of the steinhatchee river. give you perspective, those buildings down there, that's the marina, this is a little harbor area here along the river, we were doing our morning live shot standing on the banks of the river down there. it is now completely overcome the road here, and we are watching -- we have another camera up high that we can show you, a zoom shot of the debris now floating up river, including huge floating marinas. these are on floats and they slip their moorings and we have watched entire docks wash by with sailboats still attached. and the folks who run the place here, we are the river inn motel, they are really or eid about friends much theirs who stayed. in particular, there was a sailor who stayed on his sailboat just around the corner. there is a causeway just around the corner i don't know if you can peek around the corner and give them a

needless to say where i'm standing in steinhatchee, all along the steinhatchee river, you will not be am will be covered in water. if the forecasts are correct the water would be well over where my head is right now. we've seen the effects of storm surge in florida. last year hurricane ian, the storm surge devastated fort myers beach in punta gorda. not too far from there is clearwater beach which is where gloria pazmino is tonight. gloria, what are you seeing? >> john, i was speaking to people who were walking along the beach just about two hours ago as the sun was coming down, they were walking, taking in the scene, taking in the waves that were coming in. and they told me that they were riding out the storm right here in clearwater beach even though this is a mandatory evacuation zone. they said they live about five miles inland and that was giving them a little bit of comfort about what might happen in the next several hours. now, you talked about the storm surge. you are about 200 miles north of where we are. we are to your south right now. so the storm is moving in your directio

i want to go right to bill weir in steinhatchee in florida.out an hour and a half from where i am now, but it's a world away in terms of devastation. bill, just describe what you're seeing. >> reporter: john, the good news is, it seems like the surge has crested here in steinhatchee. you can see this line of debris, there's some boxes and logs here. it has been receding ever since. but the devastation, it is leaving behind is obvious. this is the dockside grill here. the steinhatchee river rushed its banks. we knew that was going to happen. it normally runs from east to west. we're looking south right now. the force of the dirty side of the storm has been forcing so much water upstream against the current here and the victims of that are all of these fishing community villages, condo communities. there's not a lot of development around the corner this way. most of the town is behind us on higher ground. so that's good news. but where you were yesterday, john, the marina, all of that we fear might have been wiped out as it's the first bend in t

we have the latest update, you're looking at pictures of steinhatchee, florida, north of steinhatcheen the hour is when the expected landfall will occur for this now category 3 storm, winds about 125 miles per hour, very significant concern about storm surge, it could go from 12 to 16 feet, winds, tornadoes, the outer bounds we've been covering up and down the gulf coast of the region of florida, last several hours, we've been seeing the outer limits of that hurricane. we are now planning and waiting for that direct hit. sara, in crystal river, you've been seeing a lot of the flooding, a lot of the kind of effects of the outer bounds up to this point. what are you seeing right now? >> reporter: yeah, lots of wind. the pushing of the water onto land it is now gone several feet onto land. now, look, there is a great hope that we don't get the kind of storm surge that was expected here which is between six and nine feet, which would be far over my head from where i'm standing which would mean the entire city here that's about 3,400 people would be flooded, all the way up to city hall. at

this is the steinhatchee river.lieve it is flowing away from the gulf of mexico and deadman bay. it's flowing in the opposite direction it normally flows. that gives you a sense of the power of this storm as it pushes the water from the gulf of mexico up into the wrong direction of the steinhatchee river. also in the distance there you can see some of the destruction, including it looks like some sort of structure, a mangled metal that we've seen debris and other items like a capsized boat is what it looked like floating down this river. i think it might be the metal structure we saw floating down the river earlier that has now stopped and seems to be resting against another structure. and then we're along the main road here. this road leads into the town of steinhatchee. there is water in that direction so it is very hard to pass unless you have a high water vehicle or high pickup truck. then in this direction you can see that there are trees down, power lines snapped in half, and that's a huge issue here, by the w

it's going to go to steinhatchee. places that are widely populated like tampa, but significant evacuations have to take place to get people out of there. a 15-foot storm surge, because this is so flat down here, could go four miles inland. if your house isn't on stilts, it's not going to make it. kaitlan. >> we'll be keeping an eye on the storm surge. obviously, you say it's what's going to be potentially the worst part of this. thank you so much, chad myers. >> you're welcome. >> carlos suarez is also on the ground for us. carlos, i know that you have been talking to people all day about this. how are people there bracing for what chad just laid out there, what we're going to see? >> reporter: well, kaitlan, we are in for a wet and windy night here in the tampa bay area. a look at the radar shows that we're in for a strong line of thunderstorms associated with the storm. in the next hour or so, we expect that bad weather to really continue through the night. of course the big concern as chad laid out there for a good

this steinhatchee river surged more than 8 feet above the water level that you see.oke the previous record by mr. than a foot. norah? >> jason allen, thank you. >>> now to other top stories. there are new concerns over the health of the senate top republican after mitch mcconnell suddenly froze again today, standing speechless in front of reporters. it comes just weeks after a similar incident and less than six months after the 81-year-old senator was hospitalized after a fall. well get more now from cbs' scott macfarlane. >> reporter: taking questions from reporters in kentucky today, mitch mcconnell suddenly stopped speaking. >> running for reelection in 2026? >> did you hear the question, senator? running for reelection in 2026? >> reporter: expressionless for several seconds, mcconnell continued to stare straight ahead. >> all right. i'm sorry, y'all. we're going to need a minute. >> reporter: mcconnell ultimately gathered himself and finished the press conference. >> okay. >> reporter: his staff said the 81-year-old republican leader experienced light-headedness

she joins me from steinhatchee, florida with her husband. she's talked about the storm as far as devastating with flood waters there, reaching up to the second floor of many people's homes. crystal, talk about what you've been through the last 12 hours. how are you holding up? >> i can barely hear you, but i believe you said talking about the aftermath here in steinhatchee. i'm standing at a local restaurant right now. this is roy's restaurant. some staples here in town. behind it, you'll see the floating docks. that's where i keep my boat. you can see how they're up on the pilings. the debris is everywhere. the flood waters came well over six feet here. >> crystal, what about your boats, your business? how are you planning to cope the coming days and weeks? >> right. this coming weekend, of course, for everyone, it's labor day weekend. so it's one of our busiest times of the year. and with this hurricane now yo -- we have a lot of chargers lined up, reservations at air b&bs and hotels. we have to cancel that. we can't go scalloping or fishi

well, just north of omar is one of the hardest hit florida communities called steinhatchee.the storm surge starting to recede after the small town was a most entirely underwater. >> reporter: the powerful, 9-foot storm surge engulfed this coastal community, flooding streets and partially submerging homes. this pier at the the marina was destroyed. nearby tents ripped apart. here at the mouth of the steinhatchee river, there was a small business here, realty office. the people here told me had survived several hurricanes. the storm surge knocked it down. pieces of it are down the street. it moved this truck into the side of the building, and inside that restaurant, everything is flooded. everything inside destroyed. hurricane-force winds ripped up rooftops and downed trees in this community of nearly 600 people. streets are now covered in debris. trees snapped off in the intense winds here. the floodwater still surrounding homes. some people still up on their balconies right now, waiting for these floodwaters to go down. connie walden rode out the storm at home. she was there

a tree also landed on connie walden's home in steinhatchee. she and many of her neighbors shows to not evacuate. >> i've got a lot of people mad at me right now that i didn't. >> reporter: even though the storm has mostly moved on from the big bend region, forecasters warn the high tide fueled by a rare blue supermoon could keep pushing the storm surge higher, up to 16 feet in some places. idalia reached georgia as a category 1 hurricane knocking out power to tens of thousands. >> for those that were in the line of the storm, it is very hard hitting. >> reporter: idalia's expected to move into south carolina by wednesday evening. they finished the search and rescue operations in this area. there are still quite a few public safety officials here, even national guard keeping an eye on things on this first night after the storm. >> jason, any idea what some of the folks that did have to evacuate or chose to evacuate, when they'll be able to come back to their homes? >> reporter: most of them have been able to. we didn't see a whole lot of roads

a tree also landed on connie's home in steinhatchee, she and her neighbors chose not to evacuate. >> i've got a lot of people mad at renowned me right now. >> reporter: forecasters warn the high tide fueled by a rare blue supermoon could keep pushing the surge higher, up to 16 feet in some places. it reached georgia as a category one hurricane, knocking off power for tens of thousands. >> for those that was in the line of storm, it was very hard-hitting. >> reporter: it is expected to move into south carolina by wednesday evening. we continue to see search and rescue teams circling the area today, watching those flooded neighborhoods. still some rescue crews going in on the ground, just making sure that everybody who wanted to get out was able to get out. >>> we will continue to update you on tropical storm idalia and its impact on air, and online at kpix .com. >>> meanwhile, at oracle park, 50 immigrants took the oath of allegiance ahead of the giants game, the pregame naturalization ceremony was the first, the new citizens hailed from 27 different countries. >>> and the bay is welc

just beyond that is the steinhatchee river.ing is so bad that you can't see where the river ends and the floodwaters start. that is the power of the storm surge. we have trucks going over the powerlines with an air boat in the back. i want to show you the power of the winds from the storm. it took out this tree and another tree behind it. as this truck goes by you might be able to see the powerlines that was snapped in half. power outages are a huge problem in this area where we are 75% of people here don't have power right now. i believe these are rescue crews or perhaps volunteer rescue crews moving into this area that has been inundated with water. we spoke with a local who was driving by and he has said he never saw the floodwater come this high. the town of steinhatchee is a small one. it is up the road, you go over the bridge and get to it. we are told the damage to businesses and homes could be even worse. lastly, if we haven't showed it already, i will show you some video we caught as soon as we arrived here. you see th

just behind us is the steinhatchee river. i want to show you this direction.ee the floodwaters that moved in from the storm surge, some of the water is still blocking roads, making them impassable. in addition to the storm surge they saw here, they had to deal with what took down structures like the ones around us, watch your head as you come under. this is where the water was on the outside of this building. i spoke with the owner, checking it out for the first time, he told me the water was just about up to his waist on the inside of the building as well or would have been at the peak of this storm. you see the sludge and muck, the water has receded. in this area the floodwaters still have not gone down all the way. you can't drive through this area. what we saw up the road are florida fish and wildlife state law enforcement officials, 15 or so of their trucks, airboats getting ready to try to deploy them, some people if you can believe it, they rode out the storm in their homes. they put those airboats in if anybody needs to be rescued from their homes. whe

the steinhatchee river that i'm on right now is flows out.aybe from where it is right now. they've had real flooding issues over the last few years, but that's with the water upriver. the fresh-water falling and then coming down here it's very vulnerable, very fragile and it's not just this one river. there are all kinds of waterways, so once you start pushing a wall of water into it, as you said it just creates so many problems. unhealthy, unsafe, and for a time perhaps unlivable. >> all right, john berman in steinhatchee, thank you so much. we're standing by for an update from governor desantis as the storm pushes in and this is on the way as the worst of the storm will hit florida's gulf coast. we'll be right back. (vo) football season is here. get nfl sunday ticket from youtubetv on us. a $4$449 value. plus, get a free samsung galaxy z flip5. only on verizon. why didn't we do this last year? migraine with qulipta®? g remember the pain? cancelled plans? the worry? that was then. and look at me now. you'll never truly forget migraine. but q

that apalachee bay area, cedar key, steinhatchee all in line for a tomorrow morning landfall. it stays a hurricane even into south georgia. then stays tropical storm, south carolina, north carolina, late tomorrow, into early thursday. and when we're talking about impacts well beyond the cone, this map shows you. those tropical storm warnings all the way to the outer banks. hurricane warning, apalachicola down through bradenton. it also goes through gainesville, and right at the coast. number one way we lose life and property is storm surge. 10 to 15 feet. we're talking moving buildings type of water. that is that steinhatchee/cedar key area, where we could see that unsurvivable condition, as it makes landfall tomorrow morning. then, it's about the wind, knocking out power to so many people that live in that hot pink color there. you can see 110-plus-mile-per-hour winds that goes all the way through south georgia. we'll have tornadoes. we'll have rain on the order of 6 to 12 inches. and i think that the national weather service in tallahassee said it best. you shouldn't compare

this is a live look at steinhatchee in florida if you want to know where that is. that's right there in the state's gulf coast. our community eyeing the communitie in the path of that hurricane. and the response, people helpin people. and you can see right now, that water level is starting to rise all around tha building right up to the lower sills of the windows there. bracing for impact and they're also getting out to help one another. >> and back here in the bay area, reed, as we take a look from the top of mount diablo we have declared a first alert weather day. a spare in air alert has been issued for today with more smoke drifting into the area. good morning, everyone, i'm nicole zaloumis. busy weather day for jessica birch. >> yes it is. and these are the days when we know that weather reporting can actually help sav lives. i'm reed cowan. >> i'm gianna franco and thank god jess you are here because i'm sure lot of people have questions about what is a spare the air alert and of course all eyes on florida thinking about our friends over there and what they'r

we're on the steinhatchee river. the coast is behind you as we go west that way. you can see a lot of the sailboats tied up here. we actually learned that somebody's going to ride out the storm in one of these sailboats. when you consider that this will be maybe 110-mile-an-hour winds in about eight hours, really questioning the wisdom of that decision. but there's always folks who decide to stay in these places, including captain mike baker, longtime resident of this place, native of the keys. you're from marathon originally. so you've been through a lot of hurricanes. >> started with hurricane donna back in the day. >> reporter: talk about the decision to stay when something like this seems so obviously -- >> it started with back with hurricane donna as a kid, my parents took us to the mainland. and we came back, and our home had been rummaged from other people, the looters, they took everything. not to mention the amount of time you're away from your home, you have no idea what it's going to look like or if you have a home when you're there. all it would take f

steinhatchee, end of a long road and they are marshy, they will do their best to figure out what storm was. we may find a spot that storm surge up in that range. looking at radar and satellite, it lost energy before landfall. that was during the period energy was shifting and that is causing flooding in valdasta and that will be major flood threat from south georgia through the carolinas. >> emily: tell us about the ancillary damage and risk, storm surge will potentially bring the most damage. we discussed what would have been routine firefighting endeavor, they were wading in knee high water. i think about electrical currents. what do viewers need to know in term of risk appreciation? >> when you have a storm that knocks down trees, you have a whole set of i think thises. hurricanes, a number of people die from medical conditions because they can't get care from a physical practical standpoint. storm surge was expansive down to and including tampa bay. the storm surge is not the threat, it is rain in carolinas that the most damage. this is major threat from georgia through carolinas.

i want to get to our bill weir who is in steinhatchee, florida. what you are seeing there as the outer bands of the hurricane are slapping into you. >> reporter: yeah, it is just beginning here. the winds have just started to deck up. we lost power about 20 minutes ago or so. keeping an eye on this big tree behind us. the actual steinhatchee river is just behind us here. we're about 28 feet above elevation. this is the highest spot we could find in our hotel there. so the worry is we're keeping an eye on as the sun will come up on the water shoving up that arrive. and that is in this part of the big bend, this is the nature coast, there are so much fresh water, tributaries, rivers feeding into the gulf of mexico that will become recipients of all that water as the wind shoves it up inland as well. but a lot of the folks we met here followed the evacuation orders, but there are always a few who refuse to leave. we met a couple who had done the math and thought that it would better serve their families staying here. they are worried if they leave an

flooding was a big problem in some other communities like cedar key and steinhatchee.have video of steinhatchee where he saw county sheriff's department officials driving around in high water vehicles, coast guard planes flying overhead, florida fish and wildlife officials on both looking for anyone who might need to be rescued. the good news is officials are not aware of anyone who is missing at this point because of this storm it. today, homeowners are coming back to this neighborhood and others and looking at the damage and starting to file insurance claims. it has been a problem where some companies have considered leaving the state because it doesn't make business sense to stay with alma insurance claims people have to make because of these massive storms but governor desantis says he is working on trying to get more companies into florida. take a listen. >> as you know you need to have consumers need to have choices, that's how you keep premium increases in check. we got four in the hopper, one on the way, and when this hurricane season is over we may have more c

let's go to max gordon in steinhatchee. how are things there? >> hi, neil. the wind and the rain lashed cedar key as hurricane idalia came to show. the big story here in cedar key was the storm surge. about seven feet of water rushed in wreaking havoc especially to this hotel here. it broke through windows, walls, doors, rushing in to hotel rooms look this and creating a mess. now the water has receded, the cleanup process has begun. it's been a hot and sticky one. very humid here in cedar key. debris lines the roadways as people try to muck out their homes, businesses, trying to just salvage whatever they can. just picking through the debris here. neighbors have been helping neighbors. the national guard has been here, too. high-wheeled vehicles, getting in to hard-to-reach places delivering food, water to residents. take a listen. >> it's always hard. it's always hard. the greatest blessing is seeing the community come together. so many people pull together in times like these to love each other and meet needs where needs need to be met. >> officials are t

the storm has passed the first responders are active >> reporter: in steinhatchee, water is everywhere the town under curfew and neighborhoods completely inundated by the rising tide because of that storm surge, many communities were cut off. people were stranded or trapped in their homes. units like this from the national guard have been deployed because of their high-water vehicle and those rescue boats up top. the keim family is safe, but their yankeetown home is underwater >> why did you decide to evacuate? >> this surge right here, man, if we had been in our property, we would have gotten flooded, and we wouldn't be able to leave. >> the tree just went down. >> reporter: with trees down and roads submerged all over the area, moving can be as treacherous as staying put. already two separate car crash fatalities reported by florida highway patrol blamed on the weather, a total that would have grown if not for daring swift-water rescues that saved dozens outside of tampa. >> didn't know what i was going to do until these guys showed up i was going to actually stay and swim in my hous

appreciate you coming on. >> thank you. >> julie: we'll go live to steinhatchee, florida and watch ourther where they're reporting with the latest conditions. >> this current on the river was very strong this morning. it slowed down a little bit as the winds have slowed down. but we saw this -- the current carrying debris, capsized boats. we saw a large metal structure of some sort that was flowing down the river and it looked like it stopped somewhere in this area. that's how we ended up here looking for that and we're seeing this damage, too. that's the latest here as we continue to drive around this fairly small town. not a huge population but a lot of damage, amy. >> when you look at this is it your suspicion that water as able to get in some of the structures and homes nearby? it looks like a surge carried debris onto the roads. >> i would say almost definitely. obviously it is hard to tell from the outside of a building whether water has actually gone into it. but from what we've gathered and from what you can see strewn all about here, this is a huge level of recession, the wate

the gulf has just moved in ove oversee cedar key and steinhatchee.ricane idalia is now over georgia. it's a storm that georgia has to deal with the winds, category 1 winds and devastating rain, 4 to 10 inches in some places. the concern there will be trees, tree damage, you can see some of the trees here in tallahassee. we are getting reports of trees down in freshwater flooding the roads. just going to be a mess. all around northern florida and into georgia and in the carolinas as well. even as the storm moves bringing the wind and if rain, the concern in florida is still very much the storm surge along the gulf coast. yes, the storm has passed, but the surge continues. as the winds are still pushing the water inland towards shore and high tide in some areas is not for several hours. let's go to derek van dam who is in tampa who that be walking along the river all morning long. derek, what are you seeing now? >> reporter: john, it is so important to point out that a year ago when hurricane ian came through this general area, it actually sucked the w

. >> reporter: just up the coast in steinhatchee, the family was split whether or not to evacuate, sheated with her husband. >> we evacuated because nine months pregnant, in and out of labor all day with contractions. >> reporter: her brother and the rest of the family stayed home to watch over the family business, the sea hag marina. >> we're more scared for the marina than our safety. we do have a lot of damages that happened to everything else but could have been a lot worse. >> reporter: the family has owned the marina for 24 years. normally it's sunny and filled with fishermen and lodgers enjoying the views. >> one of the biggest on the west coast of florida, one of my parents' babies, it's like their child is in danger. >> reporter: but today much was hit with major storm surge leaving debris and damage in its wake. >> a few hours ago it looked like -- like a crazy place. wind blowing sideways. trees going sideways. it was real. but now it's bright and sunny here. >> reporter: despite the damage, the norwood family focused on the newest member to be born. >> people around the tow

we're in steinhatchee about 100 miles south of where idalia made landfall.ple are coming back in the area if they left to assess the damage. other people stayed there during the storm. up the road you see flashing lights, those are florida fish & wildlife vehicles, fwc, state law enforcement. we can see actually to our right here, those guys are also with fwc. they were out on a boat going up and down the river, seeing if anybody might need help and overhead the coast guard was flying above to see if anybody might need help in assessing the damage here. just met john, jane, and patrick a couple minutes ago and you guys rode out the storm in your house here in steinhatchee. category 3 when it made landfall what was it like? >> windy. >> windy. noisy. >> windy and noisy in the house. >> i've been driving around the neighborhood, seeing all trees in the middle of the roads, power lines. you guys i assume don't have power? >> no, we don't have power. >> reporter: 80% of taylor county doesn't have power but you're in the majority. did you hear trees cracking and

cnn's live up and down the coast, including in tampa and steinhatchee. we will speak live with some storm changes storm chasers in the heart of the bull's-eye, also officials warn that time is running out to evacuate. first let's get straight to chad myers with this new forecast. chad, what is the path of hurricane idalia at this hour? >> still straight up to the north and likely just to the east of tallahassee as it continues to the north overnight. now the hurricane center will be putting out updates once per hour, not every three hours, so that is some excellent news for us here in the news business. up to 110 miles per hour, 111 is a category three, so we are there on the cusp. we have been seeing this eye develop for the two or three hours past. we haven't had an eye for most of the storm, but that eye is very indicative of what we expect this storm to do, increase in intensity. an eye means the storm is breathing in its eyewall, sinking air in it i, and then all of a sudden things begin to go bump in the night. we are also seeing the lightning pick

taking a live look from steinhatchee, florida. on the state's gulf coast there and you are seeing winds whipping and chopp waters and a lot of rain coming down. hurricane idalia serious. making it impact on the sunshin state. >>> plus back here at home in the bay area it's also a first alert weather day and you are looking live from the treasure island cam. first alert meteorologist jessica bi h will ( ♪♪♪ ) feel thehe power ofof osteo bi-i-flex®.. taken evevery day, it's's clinicalllly shown to improrove joint c comfot inin 7 days, with sigignificant i improvet over timime. ( ♪♪♪ ) >>> get out your silver lay it on the bed beyonce fans. it is wednesday, august 30th. >> let's get things started. >>> it's pretty scary. as kind of crazy. >> florida's gulf

as we came in early this morning in to steinhatchee, that was not the case.at had fallen in to the road. the other piece i wanted to mention, the power outages. it's gotting hot and humid as is characteristic for florida. 80% -- more than 80% of this county is without power. so that is going to be something that they have to deal with as they start the cleanup process here. >> neil: got it, grady. to kevin guthrie. thanks for taking the time. how are things from your vantage point? >> neil, compared to some of the other hurricanes here in florida, we're looking good. as a reporter mentioned there before, we have some counties in the big bend area that have 80, 98% of the power is shot off. we do have crews working on that right now. we're bringing stuff back on line as fast as we can. the difference here is southwest florida where we were going in to tampa as well, lots of urban dense area. so we can bring on a lot of accounts quickly with a couple of power line changes. in this situation, we may have to restring five miles of string and line just to get two

this is time lapse video from steinhatchee, which is halfway between tampa and the panhandle. you see the floodwaters there start to rise and flood that house. the island community of cedar key also hit hard. the water has receded there, which is good news, but this drone video shows the destruction left behind. nbc bay area's damian trujillo joins us now north of tampa, as first responders rush help those trapped by the floodwaters. >> reporter: rescuers have been here in pasco county all day. they arrived shortly after we did this, just after 6:15 this morning. they've been rescuing people until morning until evening. the victims included young and old and many pets. they were brought in huge military-style vehicles. we jumped on the become of a four-by-four owned by a local man named dalton. we drove us around to see the floodwaters for ourselves. you saw cars abandoned in the middle of the street, boats that were swept up to the doorstep of homes, and you saw people still refuse to evacuate, even with all the warnings by first responders. so you're one of those who waited

and it was also right in the center of the hurricane as it made landfall, just to the north of steinhatchee those westerly winds just ripping off the gulf of mexico, and it's relatively low-lying as well. hurricane hermaine caused about 6 feet of water to happen there. but the storm surge is like a tsunami-like feature that comes in off the gulf of mexico right when those onshore winds start to increase in speed. it's associated with debris and it has waves on top of it as well. you can see just how destructive it is there firsthand as cedar key started just before sunrise and continuing into the morning hours. >> we're watching some more video that you shot of a condo complex. and we can see what it has just ripped apart. fencing ripped off, structural damage, doors blown out. i'm not sure how much you've been able to get around there to see, but just how widespread is the damage? >> well, the damage is pretty widespread for those first-floor units. there's a lot of stilt homes and they were able to stay just above the water for the most part. but there are some other areas around the isla

watch and listen as the storm pushes into steinhatchee, florida nearly reaching rooftops. water rising from 1 to 8 feet in just over an hour. captain jody griffiths saw it all, trying to protect his marina resort. >> that ship came from our neighbors. the roof here come from the neighbors over on the other side. >> reporter: was it like a wall of water or was it just kind of building? >> it was a surge. >> when it came, it came. >> reporter: with many neighborhoods initially cut off, the scale of the devastation here is just beginning to come into focus. >> it got higher. >> reporter: some, like linda wicker's family, who have owned roy's restaurant for two decades will have to rebuild from scratch. is it a total loss? >> pretty much, pretty much. >> reporter: yeah? >> the building is not. but the contents are pretty much -- everything's gone. >> reporter: idalia made landfall with a ferocity not seen in this area in more than a century. daring high water rescues rolled out up and down the coast. and more than half a million lost power. many have been restored. >> the bulk

we were in steinhatchee yesterday, we saw waist-high water that had receded by afternoon time and cedar key, similar question, this tiki bar owner describes what he saw when he went back to his business. all we have here in my house, four feet under water. my house looks like the couch is where the refrigerator was. i am homeless for a while, we'll get through it. >> in tallahassee, wind was a huge problem, a lot of trees taken down, including 100-year-old oak tree at the governor's mansion, while the first lady of florida and their three kids were inside. fortunately, all of them okay. back here live as people come back to assess damage and start clean up, florida governor ron desantis has a warning for anyone looking to take advantage of the storm victims. >> i would remind looters, you never know what you are walking into. i have seen signs in yards in the past after disasters and probably here, you loot, we shoot, you never know what is behind that door if you break into somebody's house. >> that is the warning from governor desantis. we have seen power crews in the area, but 99% of

updated hurricane relief efforts in his states and reports of people looting in the hard hit town of steinhatcheelet's get update on storm recovery now. i want to bring in kevin guthrie. kevin, what are your biggest concerns right now? >> our biggest concern right now leading into the evening hours is going to be individuals that do not have power. making sure that if they need power, they need to try to get to a shelter, we still have shelters across the state of florida. if you're sitting in a situation, because we had quite a bit of sunshine here this afternoon, if things are starting to heat up and you're suffering from heat stress and what not, you'll want to get to a shelter for tonight until we get the rest of the power restored. we're continuing to restore power and doing it very, very quickly! your search and rescue teams are doing their searches. you warned the process could take longer than normal. why is that? >> yeah, this topography in north florida, big bend area, is completely different than fort myers. last year we had 10 urban search and rescue teams, five of those federal type

that is going to bring significant to catastrophic damage to cedar key, steinhatchee, and the coast alongaylor and dixie counties. and you will see from this time lapse video just how quickly the waters rise, when pushed by winds that at that moment as it came ashore were up over 125 mph. i was telling in you the last hour that this big bend area of florida traps all the water, like a giant baseball mitt. and plenty of photos on line now of roads online now of roads and ground floors sumberged. tampa avoided the worst of it, but you will see there was still considerable flooding, and tonight there's a king tide which is going exacerbate the problems. nowhere for the water to go. as for the storm itself, that has has eased from a category 3 as it came ashore to a categoryi storm heading over georgia towards the carolinas. but important to note, that really the categorisation of a storm like this 150 miles across, doesn't correspond to the damage it can still cause. so plenty of flood warnings tonight in georgia as well. our correspondent helena humphrey joins us now from cedar key. we spok

cedar key, steinhatchee. might be some of these other coastal towns. certainly it's a possibility. here's another idea. right along the south carolina border. category one. going into wednesday evening with 80-mile-an-hour winds. all the rain be devastating and the south carolina coastal area could see heavy rainfall. 2 to 6 inches potential for flash flooding. certainly there as we go to the next 24 to 36 hours. lots to tell you about omar. >> we will stay close to throughout it all. these developments moving very quickly as the storm continues to make its way towards the florida coast. karen mcguinness, thank you want to bring in cnn's gloria pazmino not covering the storm next to float us can't tampa bay. as you heard gloria, it's now a category three. forecast category four at the time example. i can see the wind. it appears to be picking up the last time we spoke but what are you seeing on the ground? >> omar, i apologize because i think we are having connection issues. hopefully you can hear me. having a hard time hearing you. but we were just talking about the hurricane offi

. >>> our next guest owns fiddler's restaurant and resort, a restaurant in steinhatchee, florida, oneis with us. thank you for taking the time to be with us. we understand your home is okay. your restaurant most certainly is not. what kind of damage are you seeing? >> um, we got 3 feet of water in the restaurant, 4 in the hotel room. i'm right here out front now, and we've got debris everywhere. 3 to 4 inches of just like this silky mud that is awful smelling. we're fortunate we didn't have any structural damage. just a lot of cleanup. >> so tell us about that. what is that going to mean for you? i can only imagine if you have 4 inches of, you know, stinky mud and drywall and all the like? >> we right now have crews here giving us ideas on how we should move forward. our biggest goal is to be getting -- we have three bars on-site. we're going to try to operate out of our front bar, which is much easier to clean so we can get propane cookers and cook meals to get warm food in people. we know we're going to need a place for people to decompress and take a break, so we're trying to get t

i checked the elevations for cedar keys, for steinhatchee, for apalachicola.nificant. so that water is going to move very far inland. it will be catastrophic. people who stayed in this area, it's not very different densely populated. it's very, rule it's beautiful, wildlife areas. they have springs. there you can paddleboard with manatees. it is a very enjoyable community. the power will go out. you will have the storm surge across the region. it's going to be very very difficult post hurricane landfall. so category two right now. and you can see right there. goes from 2 to 4. i atlanta. maybe around atm. so somewhere in the. the national hurricane center says that we might see this as a category four. as it strengthens. right before it makes landfall. but. i want to point out another thing, here's georgia. around here is seven. we have brunswick. that away one hurricane. the folks of the midlands of south carolina. coastal areas could see severe flooding. strong tropical storm. lots going on with this system. we will keep you updated at the top of the hour. k

so, the damage assessment here in steinhatchee is just beginning. >> aishah: be careful when you are walking through the waters. thank you, grady. >> john: we want to jump to the white house, fema director is giving an update on the federal response to hurricane idalia. listen in for a few minutes. >> while we were in there, the president contacted governor desantis to let him know the federal family continues to be there to support him, the governor expressed all of his needs are met currently, and the president reiterated that if anything is needed from the federal government we will be able to support and we have over 1,000 personnel currently deployed, prepared to support not just florida but all of our states in the path as needed. while i was in there, the president also directed me to travel immediately to the area and i will be travelling later this afternoon to join governor desantis tomorrow to do assessments and see firsthand what the impacts from this storm are. and i can be able to report back to the president exactly what i see, what we think the needs might be and wher

that move into a home because even though it recedes pretty quickly and that's what we saw in steinhatcheethe afternoon yesterday, most of the flood water had subsided from the homes. but then you have to worry about the stench. there is mud in all of these homes. and there could be mold in some of them once they dry out. so, it's going to be statewide and really a nationwide effort to help these people who have been displaced by this storm. >> brian: all right, grady, thank you. meanwhile download the app. if you haven't yet, fox weather app. continuing coverage. then you won't need us as much as you do. >> steve: you know what? one other thing regarding fox weather. if you have the roku channel go, to roku and fox weather is there, absolutely free. so check it out. >> rachel: that's true. all right. well, lawyers for irs whistleblower shapley say that the justice department officials meddled with the hunter biden investigation. >> steve: and more email revealing the first son's relationship with the officials from former president obama's state department did exist. mark meredith is live

that is steinhatchee. they are waiting until the storm passes.hey have generators prepositioned for people who are going to take longer to get restoration of electricity. >> ainsley: 5500 national guard troops and soldiers equipping boats to go for relief effortses. thousands of line workers will assist. estimate 30 to 40,000 workers will be there to help. 29 state colleges and seven universities have closed including fsu, where brandi campbell is live. thousands of students just checked in and now they are experiencing this. what is the latest there? >> good evening, guys. power outages in tallahassee continue to climb. last time i checked, i saw 19,000. since we've been out here we heard two transformers blow. we know that was one big concern for this city. they are known for tree can ope, you see the greenery around me. 55% tree coverage in this area. we will have to see how many trees have come down in this area and if any have been cause for the power outages. the garage we are housed in now taking safety if needed, power has gone out there.

and big ben, the storm caused water levels in the steinhatchee river to jump a foot in one hour.burg area, more than 75 people have been rescued from severe flooding. hundreds of thousands of households lost power. more are still in the dark tonight. all that said, thankfully, it looks like hurricane idalia do not bring the worst-case scenario, the sort of one tense chance we were looking, at possibly, last night, at least not this time. the last time, however, it was catastrophic. remember, almost a year ago hurricane ian hit fort myers beach, as a category 4 storm, where flattened homes and businesses, left billions of dollars of damage and causing over 40 deaths. it was super bad. and just because it didn't do the worst this time does it mean it won't the next time. next time is the real question. because there will be a next time. there we be more storms like idalia and ian. inhabitants of the florida peninsula have known this for 100 of years. there was a steep dorm in 15 53 that killed 1500 people. 150 years ago we started pumping lots of carbon into the atmosphere by burni

his family owns the local marina in steinhatchee in florida. it's wonderful to see you.lad you made it through and your family is okay. you made the decision to stay and to protect your marina. how did it go? >> it went pretty well. so, you know, we didn't know exactly what to expect. we were watching the storm very carefully and watching it very close. but we were expecting the storm surge to come around high tide in the middle of the morning around 3:00. so, this morning we were down at the marina at 3:00 looking to see how the storm was doing and see if we had any water. and we didn't get any surge on the high tide. so, we started to think that maybe it ain't going to be that bad of a storm surge. then right around daylight whenever it was saying that the eye of the hurricane was going to be here, right around 7:00, when you can start to see some -- see out the windows and stuff, the winds started picking up. we started to get around probably, like, 70 to 80-mile-an-hour winds. and in a ten-minute window, the water just flowed in like a river. it was probably coming i

it would have been north of that one location we have at cedar key and on up toward steinhatchee.e don't have those numbers because there aren't elevation buoys to tell us just yet. this will be man on the ground trying to find out those numbers over the coming days. >> we're waiting right now. a briefing at the white house just started. we're waiting to hear deann ch chriswell, the fema director, about what they're dealing with. as you're looking at georgia, this is still continuing. what do you think at this point? what are some of your questions right now as fema is looking forwards this becoming a big flooding event a little further inland with georgia? >> right. it's the onshore flow that we still have, even for charleston. just had a 58-miles-per-hour gust on jekyll island which is a barrier island in georgia. the wind is still pushing water up. we're still seeing people, especially along the east coast here. we are still water lines going up and up and up. especially as we talk about these king tides that we've had. the supermoon. the moon is 18,000 miles closer to the eart

steinhatchee get a good sense of the legal advice don trump was getting inside the white house. >> wealking about whether we are going to, as a nation, completely repudiate every one of our founding principles, which is what the modern left wing, which is a control of the democrat party, believes, that we are the root of all evil in the world and we have to be eradicated. this is an existential threat to the very survive ability, not just of our nation, but of the example that our nation properly understood, provides to the world. that's the stakes. and trump seems to understand that in a way a lot of republican establishment types and washington don't. and that means a stolen election that force the will of the people trying to correct course and get back on a path that understands the significance and the nobility of america and the american experiment is really at stake and we want to fight for. it was a provision in the declaration of independence that says a people will suffer abuses while they remain sufferable or tolerable, where they remain tolerable. but at some point abuses

steinhatchee, cedar key. when we're talking about 12 feet that's the first floor of a house. hopefully people heeded those warnings in this region because especially closer to the coast you go, the worse those conditions are going to be. and remember water is destructive. it washes away anything in its path when we're talking about not just a wall of water but it could be accompanied by those very strong winds and large, destructive waves. this is what we're watching right now as far as folks on the west coast of florida. when we look to the east coast including parts of georgia and carolinas, fairly good surge as well. 2 to 4 feet. that's pretty impressive in this area especially when we're talking about high tide and we have that full moon you're expecting. so your tides are going to be elevated just as the time we're looking at the worst of the surge coming in especially places like charleston, savannah, stretching down to fernanda beach anywhere from 2 to 4 feet. don't take that lightly. of course the worst of it on tap in the short-term is going to be for the state of fl