Major Hurricane Idalia hit Florida last week

Back in the day, they warned entire counties but now the alerts are issued based on the polygons.

Here is the relevant warning on this one:

WWA Summary for Tornado Warning

* At 120 PM EDT, Doppler radar indicated waterspouts located just
offshore along a line extending from near Marco Island to near
Cape Romano, moving north at 40 mph.

HAZARD...Tornado.

SOURCE...Weather spotters reported waterspouts moving onshore.

IMPACT...Expect damage to mobile homes, roofs, and vehicles. Tree
damage is likely.

 

We see lots of waterspouts, very few seem to ever become a tornado.

 

Yeah, waterspouts are obviously super common and most are relatively weak and short-lived, never making it to shore. Tornadoes spawned from tropical systems tend to be on the weaker side (EF2 or less) but they can pop up fast and move very quickly. There were about 15 associated with Ian. Ivan holds the record at about 120 tornadoes.

List of tornadoes spawned by tropical cyclones - Wikipedia

 

My anecdotal, nonstatistical observations ...

We've lived in Fort Myers for nearly 40 years. For the first 30 years, we'd monitor the approach of hurricanes and would see mostly Category 1 or 2 storms, and an occasional Category 3, 4 or 5 storm (like Andrew and Charley). We'd put up plywood boards once every 3-4 years.

Now, we monitor the approach of Category 3, 4 or 5 storms every year.

Hurricane Irma was a turning point for us. It was huge and covered the entire state! We boarded up our house in Fort Myers, then helped my brother board up his house in Tampa, and ended up sheltering in Orlando. After that experience, both my brother and I installed hurricane impact windows on our houses. So, we were ready when Hurricane Ian slammed Fort Myers last year.

In sum, we don't need any more convincing that the strength of these storms has increased considerably.

 

Just got hit by the first of the rain bands here in Tampa.

 

A waterspout came ashore in our backyard back in the early eighties. Picked up my Hobie Cat and tossed it into some trees 30 or 40 yards away. It dissipated after crossing the street.

 

Water close to flooding Bayshore on 1PM high tide and standing water near DI on-ramp. Will be sporty at 3am but pretty sure I’ll sleep through it.

 

CNN hyperbole or not?

 

I would say a little over the top right now. After it passes they may be right. This has the potential to be a very bad storm. Not just for Fl but GA and SC as well.

 

We will see where it makes landfall; some areas are more vulnerable and populated than others. We have to hope that the intensity models don't pan out or get even worse.

Here is what the NWS Office in Tallahassee said earlier:

Tallahassee, FL

Hurricane Idalia will likely be an unprecedented event for many locations in the Florida Big Bend. Looking back through recorded history, NO major hurricanes have ever moved through the Apalachee Bay. When you try to compare this storm to others, DON'T. No one has seen this.

 

Wow. I do remember when Dennis flooded St. Marks and it made landfall at Santa Rosa Island.

 

If you had to pick a spot on the Florida coast....it will SUCK for those that live there but at least a major population center is not in the crosshairs.

 

It is definitely a very low population area. It is absolutely beautiful there though. There's a reason why it's called the Nature Coast. Cedar Key would probably be the best known town. Gorgeous area up and down the coast there. Going to be really sad to see it blow through there.

 

Yeah, I was in Pensacola and remember Dennis, which was just a year after Ivan. I didn't remember that it had effects that far East, but you appear to be correct. According to my search, St. Marks is about 170 miles from Santa Rosa Island as the crow flies. Dennis wasn't even that big of a storm. Pretty crazy.

Hurricane Dennis - Wikipedia

During the height of the storm, Dennis produced storm surges as high as 9 feet (2.7 m) in the Apalachee Bay region, and as high as 7 feet (2.1 m) on the Florida Panhandle,[35] and left 680,000 customers without electricity in four southern states.

 

Dennis pushed four feet of sand under house on St. George Island.
Michael landed around Mexico Beach and had a big impact in Wakulla County

 

Is it possible to lay electrical cables underground in Florida to prevent hurricane outages? Or does the geology and thinness of the ground make it difficult/impossible?