4 dead as cyclone Isaias hits southern US

PENSACOLA, Florida — Four people died in the southeastern United States as post-tropical cyclone Isaias threatened flooding and tornado risks over the weekend as it moved northward after making landfall on Florida's Gulf Coast.

Isaias roared ashore late on Friday as a Category 2 hurricane near the resort community of Destin, packing sustained winds of 165 kilometers per hour before weakening overnight, the US National Hurricane Center said.

It was the first hurricane of an Atlantic season tamed by a historic El Nino weather phenomenon, and the first hurricane since 2024 to hit the US mainland.

In Mary Esther, a coastal community near Destin, Matt Howard said he was fortunate the storm weakened ahead of landfall.

Despite losing power and having his neighbor's metal shed crash into his backyard, "overall, we were okay", he told Agence France-Presse.

"We hunkered down, got in the center of our house, and did all the things you're supposed to do, and luckily came out on the other side," he said.

Officials reported at least four deaths related to the storm, including two from trees falling on homes — one near Pensacola in Florida and another in Birmingham, Alabama.

Overturned vehicles, downed trees and power lines, and numerous buildings with damaged roofs were visible. Streets along the coast were largely deserted after authorities ordered mandatory evacuations ahead of the storm.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis warned at a briefing on Saturday afternoon that threats remained even though the storm had passed.

"Just be careful out there. Downed power lines, standing water, any of that can be very, very hazardous. Don't run any generators inside your home or inside your garage," he said.

The governor's warning came after a man was found dead in Florida earlier in the day with a generator running in his garage, CNN reported.

Around 440,000 US customers were without electricity on Saturday night along the storm's path through Florida, Alabama and Georgia, according to the PowerOutage.com tracker.

The US Department of Energy on Saturday authorized the release of up to 4 million barrels of reserve crude to stave off the impact of Isaias' path through the Gulf Coast region, the country's oil refining hub.

A major flood threat remained as the storm headed northward and inland. The National Hurricane Center warned that some areas could see upward of 25 centimeters of rain.

Flood threat

"Considerable flash flooding and landslides are also possible across the Southern Appalachians," it warned in a briefing.

The threat was particularly worrying in the mountains of North Carolina, where communities are still recovering from Hurricane Helene of 2024.

That storm made landfall in the same Florida region as Isaias, but remained at tropical storm strength as it moved northward, dumping record amounts of rainfall into the mountains and leading to deadly flooding.

Meanwhile, in the Pacific, Simon strengthened into a Category 4 hurricane as it approached Mexico's coast. Simon was expected to bring heavy rainfall beginning on Sunday to parts of southwestern Mexico with life-threatening flooding and mudslides.

Tropical Storm Rachel was also expected to bring heavy winds and rain to northern Mexico and Southern California over the weekend.

AGENCIES VIA XINHUA