Four Killed as Post-Tropical Cyclone Isaias Lashes the Southeast With Wind and Rain

At least four fatalities have been confirmed since Isaias made landfall as a Category 2 hurricane on Friday, officials stated, while forecasters continue to warn of flooding and tornado threats as the system pushes further inland.

Now downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone, the storm first impacted the Florida Panhandle city of Destin on Friday evening with sustained winds of 105 mph (169 kph).

According to US media reports, the four deaths are split between two in Florida’s Escambia County and two in Alabama.

The US National Hurricane Center noted in a Saturday evening update that heavy rainfall was likely to continue across the Southeast overnight, warning of potential flash and urban flooding risks alongside high winds.

“Swells from Isaias will continue to affect much of the Gulf coasts of the United States, Mexico, and western Cuba this weekend,” the Center said, adding that life-threatening surf and rip current conditions are expected.

Tornadoes were also flagged as a possibility across eastern Georgia and the Carolinas.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said on Saturday that more than 430,000 customers remained without power, though tracking website PowerOutage.com figures dropped to roughly 323,000 by early Sunday morning.

Alabama saw over 80,000 outages, while Georgia and North Carolina each reported approximately 11,000, per the tracking site.

DeSantis cited high winds causing trees to fall and damaging buildings as the primary source of destruction in Florida.

Viral video footage circulating on social media shows torrential rain and extensive building damage, including reports of roofs being torn off.

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