Hurricane Idalia slams Florida’s Gulf Coast, NOAA warns rescues could be 'extremely dangerous'

The center of Hurricane Idalia slammed into Florida’s Gulf Coast Wednesday morning as a powerful Category 3 storm. Its catastrophic winds and dangerous storm surge demonstrated weather Florida’s west coast had not seen in 125 years.

“There is great potential for death and catastrophic devastation,” warned the Taylor County Sheriff’s Office, which is located in the Big Bend southeast area of Tallahassee, the state’s capitol.

The storm had previously hovered in the Gulf of Mexico for days and passed over the island of Cuba on Monday, finally evolving into a Category 4 Hurricane.

The storm’s sustained winds continued at about 120 mph as of 7:55 a.m. ET, according to the National Weather Service.

The storm made landfall in the Florida's "Big Bend" region near the city of Crystal River, and is forecast to drift across the Sunshine State before creeping across its northern peninsula and eventually, into the Atlantic Ocean.

Idalia reportedly is the most powerful storm to strike north of Tampa and south of Gainesville in more than 100 years, raising concerns of two of the state’s top universities, University of Florida and Florida State.

It is the third hurricane to make landfall in Florida in the past year, following Ian last September and Nicole in October.

Florida residents were encouraged to leave the area following an executive order from Gov. Ron DeSantis to activate the National Guard.

President Biden pledged to help DeSantis in any way he could, but officials are still warning residents that rescues could be challenging and “extremely dangerous.”

Some have speculated that Idalia may have “once in a lifetime threatening winds and a storm surge up to 16 feet, according to the National Hurricane Center.