Live updates: Isaias kills four in Southeast; 700,000+ without power

The Waffle House Index is an unofficial way to gauge how bad a storm is by checking whether Waffle House locations are open, serving a limited menu or forced to close.

The chain is famous for staying open through extreme weather, so when locations along the Gulf Coast began closing ahead of the storm, locals knew Mother Nature meant business.

Today, several stores in the storm’s path are reopening, marking an encouraging sign that communities are beginning the cleanup process.

Generator safety can save lives

For the hundreds of thousands still without power across the Gulf Coast, we need to talk safety with generators. 

Please keep your portable generators outside, away from windows and doors and other openings. Portable generators produce carbon monoxide, which can kill within minutes. 

Make sure you have a working, battery operated CO detector. It can save the lives of you and your family. 

One death has already been reported in Pensacola from generator fumes.

Tropical systems are also able to bring in the threat of tornadoes within their bands of rain and storms. Isaias is no exception. 

A threat of severe storms spreads from the Florida Panhandle to the Carolinas, with the highest threat including cities like Tallahassee, Charleston, Savannah and Columbia. 

The remnants of Isaias are moving through the Southeast, Tropical Storm Rachel is approaching Baja California with potential impacts extending into Southern California, and Hurricane Simon is churning off Mexico’s Pacific coast. 

Even beaches well outside a storm’s forecast path can expect dangerous surf and rip currents and those hazards may linger long after the storm has passed. 

Before heading back to the beach, check local rip current forecasts and beach warnings. Learn how to recognize and stay safe in our rip currents explained guide. 

Both Tropical storm Rachel and Major Hurricane Simon are approaching their landfalls. 

Rachel has winds of 60 mph and is racing to the northeast at 22 mph. It will make landfall on the Baja Peninsula tonight and head to the Southwest bringing 1 to 5 inches of rain to the region. 

Simon is a Category 4 hurricane with winds of 150 mph. It will make landfall in Mexico Sunday and could bring over 30 inches of rain and extremely strong wind gusts.

(FORECAST: Rachel prompts rare tropical storm watches in California; Simon update)

The Weather Prediction Center issues summaries of rainfall reports from former Hurricane Isaias. Here are some of the most impressive: 

• Bellwood, Alabama: 12.97 inches
• Caney Creek, Florida: 12.47 inches
• Defuniak Springs: 12.43 inches
• Tallahassee, Florida: 7.81 inches
• Destin, Florida: 7.52 inches
• Griffin, Georgia: 4.09 inches 
• Hartsfield-Jackson: 2.51 inches

The next round of summaries will come in at 11 p.m. tonight, but each National Weather Station will likely release their own reports in the coming hours.

We meteorologists like to throw terms out there all the time. Here is another one. Isaias’ technical title: Post-Tropical Cyclone Isaias. 

Yes, that is a mouthful, and it is intimidating, but it just means that the once powerful hurricane has lost its tropical characteristics. 

This happens as the storm moves inland and begins to break down. 

But, that doesn’t mean we are out of the woods yet. This storm has brought flood watches to over 30 million people and high wind warnings to nearly 9 million people across the Southeast. 

If you want the whole list of terms, let me throw the book at you. 

As emergency crews in Santa Rosa County assess damage and work to clear roads we have these new images of a semitruck flipped on its side in a flooded parking lot in Tiger Point, Florida, near Pensacola.  

No word yet on if Isaias’ winds flipped this big rig over, but it barely missed other cars in this Aldi parking lot.

Strong winds aren’t the only threat to trees as remnants of Isaias move inland.

Heavy rainfall on already saturated ground can reduce the soil’s ability to anchor tree roots, making trees more vulnerable to toppling during gusty conditions. 

With additional rainfall forecast across parts of the Southeast over the next few days, the combination of saturated ground and gusty winds could increase the risk of downed trees, blocked roads and prolonged power outages across parts of Alabama, Georgia and the Carolinas, including metro areas like Atlanta, Birmingham and Greenville.

Where did a flock of flamingos stay safe during Hurricane Isaias? A restroom at ZooWorld Panama City Beach.

The zoological park thanked team members who rode out the storm making sure animals across the park were protected.

In Orange Beach, Alabama — about 70 miles west of landfall near Destin, Florida — officials report that “damages were minimal” and the community was spared “from the worst of Hurricane Isaias.”

“While our hearts are filled with gratitude, we know that others were not as fortunate,” the City of Orange Beach shared online.

Starting at 1 a.m., as the storm passed, Public Works crews got to work clearing debris, according to the Orange Beach Police Department. And by 7 a.m., the mandatory citywide curfew was officially lifted and all local bridges were fully reopened to normal traffic.

Baldwin EMC is working to address power outages as daybreak begins.

Digital meteorologist Rob Shackelford explains: “One of the main reasons why this beach was spared some of the worst was because it was to the west of landfall. Often the worst damage occurs east of landfall from the front right quadrant of the hurricane as it advances. This ‘dirty side’ is where the most severe impacts often occur.”

Isaias’ winds snapped trees in half in Walton County, Florida. New pictures shared by the sheriff’s office show some of the damage, including one home that looks like something took a bite out of it.

Tropical Storm Rachel tried to pull a fast one on us, fortunately we meteorologists were prepared. 

Rachel originally was a hurricane heading out into the Pacific but turned back as a tropical storm to give the Southwest another round of heavy rainfall Saturday and Sunday. Rainfall of 1-5 inches and gusts to 50 mph are possible. This is the first time a tropical storm watch has been issued for Southern California since Hilary in 2023. 

See what Rachel’s high-tide flooding has done so far in the most expensive zip code in the United States.

As rain and wind gusts continue to hit the Southeast, here’s the latest list of the highest and most notable of each. 

Winds gusts: 

• 117 mph – 3 miles ESE of Oriole Beach, Florida (Sticknet)
• 102 mph – 2 miles WSW of Pensacola, Florida (City Hall)
• 75 mph – 4 miles ENE of Orange Beach, Alabama
• 68 mph – Warner Robins, Georgia

Rain:

• Bellwood, Alabama: 12.97 inches in 13 hours.
• Creek / FAWN Station, Florida: 12.06 inches in 24 hours (9.67 inches fell in a 3-hour window, with 4.15 inches in just 1 hour).
• Bayside Subdivision, Florida: 7.91 inches
• Destin, Florida: 6.98 inches
• Tired Creek Lake, Georgia: 3.91 inches
• Hartsfield Jackson, Georgia: 1.51 inches

We will expect more wind and rain reports as Isaias moves further inland, so take extra time if you are traveling today.

We’re getting new images of some of the damage in Destin, Florida, where Isaias made landfall.

The city is asking residents to conserve water, until power is restored to minimize sewer backups.

Scroll back a few updates to see an early morning message from Destin’s mayor.

As a UGA grad, I was very concerned about how the game would be impacted by Isaias. Fortunately, as a meteorologist, I started to get hope pretty quickly when I watched Isaias approach landfall. 

Apart from the storm picking up the pace a bit, it also slammed into the jet stream, a ribbon of fast-moving winds high in the atmosphere, which was draped over the Southeast. The jet stream and hurricanes do not get along since jet streams bring a difference in wind speed that can destabilize hurricanes. 

This was no exception with Isaias, but it did look a little different. Those upper level winds wrapped around the back of the storm, destroying the bottom. After this storm made landfall, there wasn’t much left. That means game on and GO DAWGS!

Destin, Florida, is right around where Isaias made landfall Friday evening as a Category 2 hurricane, with sustained winds of 105 mph. Authorities have begun efforts to survey the damage and bring power, water and transportation back online.

“Your city staff, first responders are doing a big sweep of the whole community,” said Destin Mayor Bobby Wagner.

He asked residents to stay home if possible and document any damage they find — from downed wires to debris on the road. 

This incredible video was taken from a Saildrone inside the eyewall of Isaias, as it was in the Gulf. 

You can see the massive waves and intense sea conditions as the storm intensified over the warm Gulf water. 

Saildrones are equipped with weather instruments and sensors, enabling them to collect valuable data from inside hurricanes, which helps with forecasting.

Isaias left a lot of debris behind, and the Florida National Guard didn't wait for daylight to start on it. By 5:50 a.m., soldiers were already out in Washington County clearing roads. 

Remember the vehicle checks we showed you yesterday? This is what those crews were gearing up for. They were staged ahead of the storm so they could reach hard-hit communities fast.

Officials are asking people to stay home if they can today, and this is a big reason why. The fewer cars out there, the faster these crews can get roads open. If you do have to go out, give them plenty of room to work and a little extra patience.

Even though Isaias is no longer a tropical system, high winds remain as the storm’s remnants travel inland.

High wind warnings are in place from central Georgia to parts of Virginia. This includes places like Atlanta, Huntsville and Asheville. 

Expect sustained winds up to 25 mph, with gusts as high as 50 mph. 

The high wind warning remains in effect until Sunday morning. 

Emergency response teams spent the night working to clear roads across Escambia County, where Isaias made landfall in Destin. You can see the massive trees that were taken down in this Facebook post shared by the county.

Nearly 130,000 customers are without power in Escambia this morning.

A flash flood warning has been issued for Atlanta, including parts of Clayton, DeKalb, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry and Rockdale Counties.  

This flash flood warning is in effect until 1:15 p.m. EDT Saturday. Rainfall of 1-3 inches has fallen already and an additional 2-3 inches are possible. 

Urban areas with poor drainage, highways and low lying areas should see some degree of flooding. It only takes 12 inches of running water to carry away most cars. 

The National Weather Service always warns, “Turn around, don't drown when encountering flooded roads. Most flood deaths occur in vehicles.”

Isaias’ remnants will bring a significant flood threat to millions across the Southeast today. 

There is a level 4 out of 5 risk for places like Atlanta, Athens and Greenville. We could see widespread rainfall totals of 3 to 5 inches, with isolated locations picking up as much as 10 inches. 

The flood threat stretches from Florida to Ohio, including Tampa, Charlotte, Nashville and Cincinnati. 

One huge gust tore the roof clean off a motel in Pensacola, Florida, where peak wind gusts reached 102 mph. This footage was captured by a local radio station as Hurricane Isaias made landfall Friday night. 

It’s one of many dramatic scenes from the ground as the storm barreled ashore.

Heavy rain and gusty winds are hitting the greater Atlanta metro as Isaias moves across the Southeast. The city is under both a high wind warning and a flood watch. 

The high wind warning calls for gusts to 50 mph through Sunday at 8 a.m. EDT. 

The flood watch calls for rainfall of 1-4 inches with isolated totals reaching 8 inches. 

Take extra time driving this morning or consider just staying inside today and watching the rain from under your favorite blanket. 

Isaias is located about 100 miles south of Birmingham, Alabama, moving north at 14 mph. The storm will move through the center of Alabama Saturday before drifting to the northeast into the Appalachians Sunday. 

As storms move inland like this, where the center of the storm is located becomes less relevant as wind and rain spread well beyond the center of the storm and the cone of uncertainty. Heavy rain is ongoing from Alabama to the Carolinas. A flood threat remains across much of the Southeast Saturday and will spread to the mid-Atlantic Sunday.

More than 858,000 homes and businesses are without power so far this morning, according to PowerOutage.us. Here are their latest numbers from the three states with the most outages:

• Florida: 436,147
• Alabama: 297,684
• Georgia: 95,162