Hurricane Isaias leaves hundreds of thousands without power in Florida and Alabama

DESTIN, FL — Hurricane Isaias slammed into the Florida Panhandle near Destin on Friday evening as a Category 2 storm with sustained winds of about 105 mph, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses in Florida, Alabama and Georgia.

At least two people were killed, including people struck by falling trees, according to local officials. Flooding closed roads in parts of southern Alabama, and the storm weakened to a post-tropical cyclone by Saturday morning.

“The flooding story is not over,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned, urging residents not to run generators inside their homes or garages. Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey said officials were watching for strong winds, heavy rain and possible tornadoes.

President Trump declared emergencies in Alabama and Florida and canceled plans to attend a college football game in Tuscaloosa so as not to slow the emergency response. The Energy Department said it would release up to 4 million barrels of crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to support refineries.