The rare weather phenomenon known as St. Elmo's fire is seen from a plane as Hurricane Idalia strikes Florida on Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2023. (Video screenshot)
(FOX NEWS) -- Hurricane Idalia has made landfall over Florida’s Gulf Coast as a "catastrophic" Category 3 storm that has already left tens of thousands of residents without power, officials said Wednesday morning.
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Idalia is producing storm surges of up to 16 feet in some areas, damaging winds howling up to 125 miles per hour, and historic freshwater flooding that has completely encompassed Floridian roadways, according to the National Hurricane Center.
A plane from McDill Air Force Base (McDill AFB ) captured the #phenomenon known as the #SaintElmoFire during the evacuation of the state of #Florida in preparation for Super #Hurricane #Idalia. A very rare phenomenon in #nature pic.twitter.com/f1RE7xYAY9
— Genesis Watchman Report (@ReportWatchman) August 30, 2023
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The National Weather Service in Tallahassee called Idalia "an unprecedented event" as no major hurricanes – those classified as Category 3 or higher – have made landfall through the Big Bend region since hurricane data was first recorded in 1851. The NWS also said "no one" has witnessed a storm strengthen to such magnitude in such a short time.
