Hurricane Isaias Aftermath: 594,000 Left Without Power

Quick Answer: Hurricane Isaias made landfall near Destin, Florida, on Friday night as a Category 2 storm with 105 mph winds, and its aftermath has left more than 594,000 homes and businesses without power across Florida and Alabama. Flooded roads, downed trees and storm surge battered the Panhandle, while President Trump approved federal disaster aid for 27 Florida counties.

By GlobalDeskNews Staff | Destin, Florida | October 10, 2026

Hurricane Isaias roared ashore near Destin on Florida's Panhandle late Friday, and the damage it's leaving behind is staggering. By Friday night, more than 594,000 customers across Florida and Alabama had lost power, roads were under water from Destin to Pensacola, and the first hurricane to strike the eastern United States since Milton was still grinding its way north through the Panhandle.

The Miami-based National Hurricane Center confirmed the storm made landfall at 8:30 p.m. Central time with maximum sustained winds of 105 mph — a Category 2 hurricane. It had weakened just below major-hurricane status in the hours before landfall, but as anyone in its path could tell you, "just below major" didn't make it any less dangerous.

Satellite view of a major hurricane crossing the Gulf of Mexico, a file photo of the kind of storm that struck Florida — FILE PHOTO: A Gulf of Mexico hurricane seen from space. Image: CIRA/NOAA, public domain.

Isaias Aftermath: Lights Out for Hundreds of Thousands

The outages piled up fast. As the eye crossed the coast near Destin, the number of customers in the dark shot past half a million — 594,000 across Florida and Alabama by Friday evening, according to data from poweroutage.us cited by the Associated Press.

Florida took the brunt of it. Florida Power & Light reported 256,239 customers without power across the northwest part of the state alone. In Escambia County, home to Pensacola, about 125,600 of 168,900 customers — roughly three-quarters — were without electricity as of 9:15 p.m. Santa Rosa County saw 76,270 of its 86,320 customers in the dark, and in Okaloosa County, where the storm came ashore, 58,332 were without power.

In Alabama, more than 95,000 customers were out, concentrated in Mobile and Baldwin counties, where downed trees and power lines littered the streets.

At landfall, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis told reporters the statewide count stood at about 260,000 customers, "mostly spanning from Pensacola to Panama City, but also including Tallahassee." By the time his briefing ended, that number had already doubled.

Streets Flooded, Bridges Closed, Water Unfit to Drink

Isaias didn't just knock out the lights — it flooded communities across the region. Roads in Destin were under water, and Pensacola police urged residents to stay off the streets entirely, warning that "many are dark because of power outages and there are many locations that have low hanging hazards," with debris that could puncture tires.

Several Panhandle counties temporarily suspended emergency response Friday night because conditions were too dangerous for crews. In Escambia County, at least two dozen roads were blocked by fallen trees and power lines.

A NOAA tide gauge at Panama City Beach recorded water 5.6 feet above normal high tide — an approximation of how deep the water stood over dry land. A weather station near Santa Rosa Sound logged a 116 mph gust as the eyewall moved through, and Pensacola City Hall recorded a 102 mph gust.

The Emerald Coast Utilities Authority put its entire service area under a precautionary boil-water notice after water outages spread across its system in Escambia County — meaning hundreds of thousands of people couldn't trust their taps until told otherwise.

Pensacola Beach on Florida's Panhandle, in the area struck by Hurricane Isaias — FILE PHOTO: Pensacola Beach on Florida's Panhandle, in the region battered by Isaias. Image: public domain.

A Rescue During the Worst of It

One of the night's most dramatic moments came in the Scenic Hills neighborhood of Pensacola, where a police officer responded to a house fire on Peacock Drive even though emergency response had been suspended at 6 p.m. because of the winds.

A man was trapped inside the burning house. The officer went in and pulled him to safety. Both suffered smoke inhalation. Fire crews had been dealing with a loss of water pressure in hydrants because of the storm, and at one point conditions deteriorated so badly that crews were ordered to abandon their firehouses and ride out the storm. They later returned to their stations, and the fire's cause remained under investigation.

DeSantis: "Cautiously Optimistic" as Teams Mobilize

At a press conference at the state's Emergency Operations Center in Tallahassee shortly after 9:30 p.m. Eastern, DeSantis struck a measured tone. "Don't be getting out on the roads ... You can't unring the bell if you mess around with a downed power (line or) end up driving in flooded waters and get into a wreck," he said.

He said there hadn't been, "at least for our state agencies, the volume of requests that usually come for some of these storms. And that's a cautiously optimistic sign." What saved the Panhandle from a harder hit, he said, was wind shear — a sudden change in wind speed or direction. "The wind shear definitely weakened it as it came in, and it's also upset the structure of the hurricane," DeSantis said. "And so if you look at it, it doesn't have that full eye like some of the most powerful hurricanes have." The storm had been a Category 3 just hours earlier (read our earlier report), making the last-minute weakening a genuine relief for coastal communities.

Search-and-rescue and debris-removal teams were staged to mobilize around 3 a.m. Central on Saturday, and the governor, Attorney General James Uthmeier and emergency management chief Jared Perdue were scheduled to brief the public again at 8:30 a.m. Eastern.

About 5,000 National Guard soldiers and airmen were deployed to help with the response, and some prisons evacuated inmates from the storm's path, according to the AP.

Trump Approves Federal Disaster Aid

President Donald Trump approved Florida's request for federal disaster assistance from FEMA, according to an Oct. 9 news release. The assistance covers 27 counties — from Escambia and Okaloosa in the west to Taylor and Dixie in the east — with emergency protective measures funded at 75 percent by the federal government.

Sen. Ashley Moody confirmed the president had also approved the state's emergency declaration, which she said would let the federal government "respond faster with assistance during the recovery phase."

Trump separately scrapped his own plans to attend Saturday's football game between the University of Georgia and the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, saying he didn't want to disrupt the emergency response.

The eye of a hurricane photographed from a NOAA reconnaissance aircraft — FILE PHOTO: A hurricane's eye seen from a NOAA reconnaissance aircraft. Image: NOAA, public domain.

The Storm Moves On — But the Danger Isn't Over

By late Friday, Isaias had weakened to a Category 1 hurricane with 90 mph sustained winds, moving north at 20 mph over the western Florida Panhandle. The National Hurricane Center expected it to be downgraded to a tropical storm by Saturday afternoon, but the rain was just getting started for communities farther inland.

Forecasters warned of 4 to 8 inches of rain — and in places more — through the weekend from southern Alabama into southwestern Georgia, with heavy rain spreading across much of the Southeast and then into parts of the Midwest and Northeast into Monday.

The Blackwater River in Escambia, Santa Rosa and Okaloosa counties was under a flood warning until Monday morning, forecast to crest at 16.1 feet early Sunday — well above its 11-foot flood stage.

In Tallahassee, the capital felt the storm's outer edges: a 52 mph gust at the airport, about 4 inches of rain in six hours in Killearn, and nearly 25,000 power outages at the peak. Crews had restored power to about 17,000 customers by late evening, with roughly 7,000 still in the dark. A Tornado Watch was extended until 6 a.m. Saturday, and a Flood Watch runs until 8 p.m. Saturday.

Even a quirk of Southern culture became a measure of the storm: dozens of Waffle Houses across the Florida Panhandle closed, the company said — notable because the breakfast chain almost never shuts its doors. When Waffle House closes, you know it's serious.

Aerial view of hurricane damage in a Florida Panhandle town, a file photo of the kind of destruction storms bring to the region — FILE PHOTO: Aerial view of hurricane damage in a Florida Panhandle community. Image: U.S. Air Force, public domain.

Why It Matters

This was the first Atlantic hurricane of the 2026 season — and the first to strike the eastern United States in exactly two years, since Milton tore across the Gulf Coast in 2024. Arriving so late in the calendar year (the latest-forming first hurricane on record by a wide margin), Isaias is a reminder that the season doesn't respect schedules.

For the Panhandle, the real story starts now: hundreds of thousands of homes in the dark, bridges and highways damaged, water systems disrupted — and fuel markets watching too, after oil surged above $105 this week on Middle East and storm shocks — and a long weekend of recovery ahead. For the rest of the Southeast, the storm's inland march means days of rain and flood risk long after the winds die down.

What Happens Next

Isaias is expected to weaken into a tropical storm by Saturday afternoon as it pushes north through Alabama and into the Tennessee Valley over the weekend, turning northeast on Sunday. The heaviest rain threat shifts with it — southern Alabama, southwestern Georgia, and eventually the Midwest and Northeast face flooding risk into Monday.

Crews in Florida will fan out at first light Saturday to restore power and clear roads. No fatalities had been reported as of late Friday night — but with search teams only beginning to move, that remains the number everyone will be watching. The 8:30 a.m. Eastern briefing from Florida's emergency officials will give the first fuller picture of the damage.

Key Takeaways

Hurricane Isaias made landfall near Destin, Florida, at 8:30 p.m. Central Friday as a Category 2 storm with 105 mph winds.
More than 594,000 homes and businesses across Florida and Alabama lost power Friday night, including roughly three-quarters of Escambia County.
Roads flooded in Destin; Pensacola police told residents to stay off debris-covered streets; dozens of roads blocked by downed trees and power lines.
A NOAA gauge recorded water 5.6 feet above normal tide at Panama City Beach; a 116 mph gust was logged near Santa Rosa Sound.
President Trump approved FEMA disaster assistance for 27 Florida counties; 5,000 National Guard members deployed.
The storm weakened to Category 1 by late Friday and is expected to become a tropical storm Saturday as it moves inland through Alabama and Georgia.

FAQs

Where did Hurricane Isaias make landfall?

Isaias made landfall near Destin, Florida, on the state's Panhandle at 8:30 p.m. Central time Friday (9:30 p.m. Eastern). The National Hurricane Center said it came ashore with maximum sustained winds of 105 mph, making it a Category 2 hurricane. It was the season's first Atlantic hurricane and the first to hit the eastern U.S. since Milton in 2024.

How many people lost power because of Isaias?

More than 594,000 customers across Florida and Alabama were without power Friday night, per poweroutage.us data cited by the AP. Florida Power & Light alone reported over 256,000 customers out in northwest Florida. In Escambia County, about 125,600 of 168,900 customers — around 74 percent — had no electricity as of 9:15 p.m.

Is Hurricane Isaias still a hurricane?

By late Friday it had weakened to a Category 1 storm with 90 mph winds, moving north at 20 mph over the western Florida Panhandle. Forecasters expect it to weaken into a tropical storm by Saturday afternoon as it pushes into Alabama and the Tennessee Valley, though its heavy rain and flood threat will continue well inland through the weekend.

What did Gov. DeSantis say after landfall?

Speaking at the state's Emergency Operations Center in Tallahassee, DeSantis urged residents to stay home and off the roads, warning of downed power lines and flooded waters. He said search-and-rescue and debris teams were staged to mobilize around 3 a.m. Central Saturday, and said the lack of heavy emergency requests so far was a "cautiously optimistic sign."

Did Trump approve disaster aid for Florida?

Yes. President Trump approved Florida's FEMA disaster-assistance request for 27 counties, with emergency protective measures funded at 75 percent by the federal government. He also approved the state's emergency declaration, and separately canceled his trip to Saturday's Alabama-Georgia football game in Tuscaloosa so as not to disrupt the emergency response.

Was anyone killed in Hurricane Isaias?

As of late Friday night, no fatalities had been reported — but officials stressed it was early. A Pensacola police officer did rescue a man from a burning house in the Scenic Hills neighborhood during the storm's peak, with both suffering smoke inhalation. Search-and-rescue teams only began deploying Saturday morning, so casualty figures may change.