Hurricane Isaias criticizes roofs off buildings, lifts cars and plunges 300,000 Florida homes into darkness

By KATRINA SCHOLLENBERGER, US HEAD OF LIVE NEWS and STACY LIBERATORE, US SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EDITOR and KELLY GARINO, US REPORTER Hurricane Isaias battered Florida on Friday night, ripping hotel roofs apart, toppling trees and sending enormous waves surging toward coastal communities as hundreds of thousands lost power. The monster storm slammed into the Florida Panhandle near Destin at around 8.30pm as a Category two hurricane, packing maximum sustained winds of 105mph. Just 30 minutes later, its winds had fallen to 85mph, but the storm continued to wreak havoc along the Gulf Coast. As expected, Isaias hit Pensacola, Florida, with life-threatening conditions extending from New Orleans to Birmingham, Alabama.

Terrifying footage has begun to emerge of Hurricane Isaias destruction, showing the roof of the Rest and Relax Inn in Pensacola being ripped clean off by ferocious winds and sent hurtling away with debris as trees violently thrashed behind it. Edgar ONeal, a professional storm chaser, was on the beach as Isaias came ashore, recording towering waves rushing toward the nearby community and sheds being carried away by the floodwaters. More than 418,000 homes and businesses across Florida and Alabama lost electricity as the storm closed in, according to PowerOutage.us. Florida reported the most outages, with around 300,000 customers facing a night without power.

What we know

Eerie photos from Pensacolas Residence Inn showed guests watching helplessly from behind glass doors as wind and rain hurled debris outside, while the lobby remained almost entirely dark. President Donald Trump said Friday evening that officials were keeping a close eye on Hurricane Isaias, telling reporters the government was monitoring the storm 'very closely.' The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a stark warning late Friday, cautioning that a 'life-threatening storm surge' could hit the stretch of coast between Dauphin Island, Alabama, and Suwannee, Florida. Water levels could rise by one to five feet in some areas if the peak surge coincides with high tide. Two airports in Pensacola and Destin-Fort Walton Beach in Florida have closed as a result of the storm, with hundreds of flights canceled.

It is the first time a hurricane has made landfall in the United States since Milton came ashore south of Tampa as a Category three storm with 120mph winds, exactly two years ago today. Isaias is the fourth named storm to make landfall in the country this season, and by far the strongest. It is also the first and only hurricane of the 2026 Atlantic season to date. Hurricane Isaias officially made landfall around 8.30pm near Destin as a strong Category 2 storm, packing maximum sustained winds of 105 mph, according to the NHC.

It is the first time a hurricane has made landfall in the United States since Milton came ashore south of Tampa as a Category 3 storm with 120 mph winds, exactly two years ago today. The storm is the first and only hurricane of the 2026 Atlantic season to date. New images capture the aftermath of Hurricane Isaias at a Circle K gas station in Pensacola, where the property sustained heavy damage after the storm made landfall Friday evening. The photos, obtained by local outlet WEAR ABC 3, show the gas stations awning completely caved in, with white panels and debris scattered across the lot.

A gray minivan appears to have narrowly avoided being crushed beneath the collapsed structure, though the vehicle seems to have escaped with relatively little visible damage. Fox Weather reporter Robert Ray was broadcasting live from Destin, Florida, on Friday evening shortly after Hurricane Isaias made landfall with maximum sustained winds of 105mph. The bizarre moment has since gone viral on X, as Ray, clad in a helmet and goggles, struggled to withstand the powerful gusts and covered his ears against the howling wind. Yet in the background, a passerby appeared blissfully unbothered, strolling past in nothing but a clear rain poncho and baseball cap.

Key details

'It's a bit windy,' he said with remarkable understatement as he continued on his way. Residents of Alabamas Gulf Shores breathed a sigh of relief late Friday evening as Hurricane Isaias shifted northeast, moving the storms eyewall away from the area. 'We're on the west of where the eyewall was, meaning that we have essentially dodged a bullet here,' CNN reporter Isabel Rosales, reporting live from the scene, said. But hours earlier, winds and rain had reached 60mph, with gusts Rosales described as 'painful' to endure while standing outside.

'Standing out here in the winds were making you unsteady on your feet,' she said. 'But now all of that seems to be beyond us. Which again, big sigh of relief for the people here of Gulf Shores.' Still, the storm left damage in its wake, with fallen trees and downed power lines reported across several parts of the state. Alabama Highway 85 and US Highway 134 were reported to be impassable.

Hurricane Isaias officially made landfall around 8.30pm Friday evening near Destin as a strong Category 2 storm, packing maximum sustained winds of 105 mph. As expected, the storm battered Pensacola, Florida, where life-threatening conditions stretched from New Orleans to Birmingham. The first photo shared by WEAR ABC 3 on X shows extensive damage to an Exxon gas station on Scenic Highway in Pensacola. Another image appears to show a tree that toppled onto a shed beside a residents home, while a third captures a man looking down at a fallen tree blocking the middle of a road.

The final photo, apparently taken from an upper-floor apartment, shows a tree ripped from the ground, its enormous root system sprawled across a parking lot. Professional storm chaser Edgar ONeal was on the beach as the monster storm made landfall around 8.30pm Friday, packing maximum sustained winds of 105mph. As enormous waves barreled toward the nearby community, sheds could be seen floating away in the distance. In another clip, a wave towers over the boardwalk steps, while separate footage shows water blasting through the railing and flooding structures beyond the gates.

Why it matters

Dumpsters and signs were also ripped away from the beach and carried off by the powerful surge. The agency also warned residents across parts of Floridas Panhandle and southern Alabama to prepare for 'extremely dangerous and damaging hurricane-force winds.' 'Residents in these areas should have a safe room to ride out the storm and prepare for long-duration power outages,' the update read. Flash floods and damaging wind gusts were also possible, along with landslides across the Southern Appalachians. Meteorologist Jason Parkin posted a video on X capturing the moment 100mph winds lifted an entire shed and carried it away in Friday's ferocious storm.

'Eric Hannan's son, Jaxson Hannan, moved to Pensacola two weeks ago. Hurricane Isaias' winds relocated a neighbor's shed!' the caption read. At first, the video, filmed through a homes glass backyard doors, shows what appears to be a relatively calm storm, with trees swaying in the wind and raindrops coating the panes. Within seconds, a panel of the sheds roof begins to tear loose before the entire structure lifts off in one piece and is swept out of frame.

A reporter asked Trump what message he had for Americans bracing for the hurricane as he returned to the White House. 'We're watching it very closely, the hurricane,' he said. 'We think we have it under control, but we're watching very, very closely, Alabama.' Trump had cancelled his planned trip to Tuscaloosa earlier Friday, scrapping his plans to attend this weekends Alabama versus Georgia football game as Isaias intensified. Isaias has weakened to a Category 1 hurricane, with maximum sustained winds of 90mph as of 10pm CT, according to the National Hurricane Centers latest advisory.

The storm is now barreling north at 20mph across Floridas western Panhandle toward Alabama. The storm is expected to lose more strength overnight, but damaging gusts will continue moving inland through Saturday. Life-threatening storm surge, flash flooding and tornadoes remain significant dangers. Photos from the Residence Inn in Pensacola, Florida, captured guests watching as the powerful Category 2 hurricane tore through the coast.

Guests stood behind the lobbys glass doors, watching helplessly as wind and rain whipped debris through the air, with only a faint glow from outside illuminating the pitch-black interior. Another photo showed guests being guided with flashlights after the power went out, as more than 300,000 homes and businesses across Florida were left without electricity.