The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a slew of warnings Monday and Tuesday as Hurricane Idalia and Hurricane Franklin ramp up energy.
An area ranging from the tip of Florida up past Richmond, Virginia, will see the potential for flash and urban flooding as Tropical Storm/soon-to-be Hurricane Idalia gains strength and makes landfall, encompassing Georgia and the Carolinas and potentially moving as far west as Nashville, Tennessee, according to NWS.
In addition to the life-threatening storm surge inundation and hurricane conditions expected along portions of the Florida Gulf Coast from #Idalia, a stripe of tropical and excessive rainfall may produce flash and urban flooding from northern Florida to the eastern Carolinas. pic.twitter.com/DQ6KE1Mu79
— National Weather Service (@NWS) August 28, 2023
Idalia was strengthening as it headed towards Florida’s Gulf Coast as of 7 a.m. central time Tuesday, posing life-threatening risks from storm surges, along with heavy rainfall through the Panhandle and southern Georgia, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) forecast. “[L]ife-threatening storm surge inundation” is likely along the Gulf Coast of Florida, including the area around Tampa Bay and Big Bend, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.
But Idalia is not the only major storm system heading towards the East Coast right now. Hurricane Franklin is currently sitting just east of Georgia and the Carolinas, and it’s unclear where he intends to go. (RELATED: Stunning Satellite Video Captures Tropical Storm Idalia Gaining Strength)
At the time of writing, the NHC forecast life-threatening surf and rip currents across the southeastern U.S., which are anticipated to spread northwards through the Atlantic and may go as far as Canada into Wednesday.
Residents in the southeast have been warned to evacuate high-risk regions as a result of Idalia. No major directions for the U.S. were provided over Franklin, as Cuba appears to be the most at-risk of serious flooding and excessive rainfall.