Hurricane Idalia is leaving a trail of devastation in its wake as it traverses from the Gulf of Mexico inland through Florida and into Georgia.

Rapidly intensifying into a formidable Category 4 storm before downgrading to Category 3 early Wednesday, the hurricane struck the land near Keaton Beach, situated at the juncture of Florida’s Big Bend region, around 7:45 a.m.

Idalia’s impact was marked by a “catastrophic storm surge” that affected a significant portion of the Gulf Coast, as the National Hurricane Center noted. Even upon entering Georgia, the hurricane maintained its status with sustained winds of 90 mph by 11 a.m. As it soaked the Florida region mainly east of Tallahassee, it continued its journey across southeastern Georgia during Wednesday afternoon.

Tragically, the Florida Highway Patrol confirmed two fatalities as the storm drew closer to the coastline. While addressing the media on Wednesday afternoon, Governor Ron DeSantis stated that the nature of these deaths, occurring in two different counties, had yet to be conclusively linked to the storm.