Hurricane Isaias, the first Atlantic hurricane of the season, made landfall near Destin in the Florida Panhandle as a Category 2 storm with wind speeds over 110 mph, bringing storm surge and high winds that left more than 800,000 people without power.
Recovery efforts are underway as the storm moves more inland. Although the center of the storm has moved out of Florida, the threat of flooding remains. Rain totals of 4 to 8 inches are forecast across the Florida Panhandle and Big Bend this weekend. Water levels along Florida's Gulf Coast are expected to continue receding throughout the day.
Video and images of property damage have been emerging throughout the day. The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office shared video taken from an HCSO helicopter, showing crews on the ground in the Panhandle providing support.
TECO crews hit the road Saturday morning headed to the Destin area, and Duke Energy is also in Pensacola helping restore power lines. As of Saturday, more than 800,000 remain without power.
Heavy rain this week in the Tampa Bay area led more residents to take precautions. With the two-year mark since Hurricane Milton hit on a Friday — and Isaias also hitting the panhandle on a Friday — the need to prepare remains top of mind for many. The city of St. Pete's sandbag program has reflected that demand.
"I think we did 900 sandbags, and then for this month alone, the past couple of days we did close to 900 as well. So the storm really drove people to get something to protect their homes," Marshall Hampton, Stormwater Pavement and Operations Director, said.
Hurricane prep in St. Pete takes place every week, Monday through Friday and every other Saturday. City of St. Pete residents can get 10 sandbags to protect their homes — not just from hurricanes, but from any flooding across the Tampa Bay area.
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