Coverage on this live blog has ended. Please click here for the latest updates.
Coverage on this live blog has ended. Please click here for the latest updates. What to know about Idalia Idalia strengthened to a Category 2 hurricane early this afternoon. By 11 p.m. ET, it had maximum sustained winds of 110 mph, 1 mph shy of becoming a Category 3 hurricane. The system is expected to be an "extremely dangerous" Category 4 hurricane at landfall tomorrow. Idalia is expected to make landfall between 6 and 9 a.m. ET tomorrow south of Perry, Florida. In the state's Big Bend area, forecasters are warning of a record-breaking storm surge of 10 to 15 feet. The Tampa area, 200 miles south of where Idalia is expected to make landfall, could experience damaging storm surge early tomorrow. Gov. Ron DeSantis activated the National Guard. President Joe Biden approved an emergency declaration. Georgia and South Carolina declared states of emergency.