[IMAGES] Widespread flooding in Florida in the aftermath of Hurricane Adalia

Florida is facing widespread flooding on Wednesday after Hurricane Adalia destroyed trees and power lines in its wake and is now sweeping through the state of Georgia.

Adalia, which has winds of up to 130 kilometers per hour, made landfall at 7:45 a.m. local time near Keton Beach in Florida as a Category 3 hurricane on a scale of 5, according to the National Hurricane Center. It has since been downgraded to a category one hurricane.

State Governor Ron DeSantis said that the coast of this southeastern state was affected by the “sea inundation” phenomenon, which caused a rapid rise in water levels in some cities, but at the present time Florida does not deplore any confirmed deaths. Press Conference.

In Stenhaci, a small town of 1,000 on the coast 30 kilometers south of Keaton Beach, the almost deserted main street is completely flooded and appears to be an extension of the nearby river.

Patrick Boland locked himself in his home instead of evacuating to face the passage of the hurricane and does not regret his choice.

• Hear Francis Bourassa, a Florida resident, tell us about his emergency measures over the Internet QUB Radio :

“The trees fell in front of my house, but other than that the house survived. Everything is fine.”

“We were born and raised in Florida, so storms don’t scare us,” said Bobby Adesano, who spent the night in his car with his wife and 1-1/2-year-old son. “If anyone needs help, we are here,” he continues.

Other cities witnessed high-speed water levels, such as the coastal city of Cedar Key, which recorded waves more than two meters high, a record level for the region.

France Press agency

“It was flooded, everything was flooded,” Shelly Boivin, manager of the Beach Front Hotel in the seaside resort, told CNN. “I just saw picnic tables go down the street in the rushing river.”

Clearwater or Tampa have also seen their streets and harbor flooded, forcing residents to move within meters of water with their belongings on their heads.

France Press agency

Nearly 300,000 homes were without power Wednesday in Florida and about 100,000 in Georgia, according to the specialist Poweroutage.us website.

And US meteorologists warned of water levels rising to between 3 and 5 meters in places in Florida.

“1,500 federal personnel have been deployed on the ground in affected areas,” said Diane Creswell, head of the federal agency responsible for natural disaster response (FEMA).

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She said U.S. President Joe Biden spoke again on Wednesday with Mr. DeSantis, like him who is running for president in 2024, to show his support and coordinate the federal response.

“Idalia is the strongest storm to make landfall in this part of Florida in over 100 years,” Creswell said.

Tampa International Airport, closed due to Adalia, is set to reopen Wednesday afternoon as flights were halted on the US East Coast, which is reeling from another hurricane, Franklin, coming in from the Atlantic.

On Cuba’s western tip, heavy rains from Hurricane Adalia, then a tropical storm, caused flooding and power outages.

At the end of September 2022, Florida had already been hit by Hurricane Ian, which claimed nearly 150 lives and caused severe damage as it passed southwest of this state.

Scientists have warned that the storms are getting stronger as the planet warms due to climate change.