Franklin to brush by Bermuda as Idalia targets northern Florida

Hurricane Franklin is expected to brush by Bermuda today, bringing tropical storm force winds and high seas in the afternoon.

The hurricane is expected to weaken to a category 2 as it reaches its closest point at 4pm Atlantic Daylight time, when it will be 150 miles to the north-northeast of the island.

At 3am AST (7am BST), it was 227 miles to the west of Bermuda, moving northeast at 12mph. At its centre, the storm was packing winds of 115 mph gusting to 138mph.

Bermuda weather forecasters were predicting Bermuda would feel sustained winds of up to 45mph with gusts to 57mph in the afternoon and into the night before conditions eased on Thursday as the storm raced away to the northeast.

Meanwhile, residents and property catastrophe underwriters are turning anxious eyes to Hurricane Idalia, which is expected to make landfall in the Big Bend area of the Florida panhandle this morning as a category 4 storm packing 130mph winds with a storm surge of 12 to 16 feet.

The storm is projected to cross northern Florida into Georgia and then continue through South Carolina by Friday morning before heading back out to sea. Some models have Idalia then moving towards Bermuda by Monday when it is expected to be a tropical storm.

Hurricane modeller Acrisure said that while the track of the storm is more certain now, impacts will be felt far from the centre, irrespective of the exact landfall location, especially as the Big Bend region is extremely susceptible to storm surge.

Local officials were urging residents to evacuate, stressing that high waters from the storm could prove deadly and first responders will not be able to help until the storm passes. But, desperate to save their homes and businesses and not leave others behind, some Floridians are staying put.

“If you haven’t evacuated, you’re north of Fort Myers, you’re up into the central Gulf Coast, northern Big Bend area, if you have not evacuated, you need to do that right now. You need to drop what you’re doing, you need to go to your room, pack up, pack your things, and get to safety,” Florida Division of Emergency Management Executive Director Kevin Guthrie warned Tuesday evening.