Idalia, a major hurricane that made landfall in Florida on Wednesday, was certainly not the worst place to wait it out.

As they assessed the damage and mopped up puddles of sea water in their kitchen on Wednesday afternoon, Mr Berzett told them “the wind wasn’t too bad.”.

He said, “The carpet and some of the furniture are toast.”.

However, they were safe, as were their neighbours.

In Florida’s Big Bend, on the state’s west coast, the Category 3 hurricane barreled through low-lying towns before moving inland and into Georgia. While the overall damage is still being assessed, there is a sense that Idalia could have caused far worse damage.

As of Wednesday night, more than 225,000 people were still without power in Florida, and another 230,000 in Georgia.

“I’ve seen people sitting in the dark for months after hurricanes,” said one linesman in Jacksonville

As soon as the storm passed, up to 40,000 Florida power workers were on standby to restore power.

Idalia passed through Georgia as a tropical storm, but it still brought powerful winds and potentially life-threatening weather. As the storm makes its way along the south-eastern coast of the United States on Thursday, coastal and inland flooding is expected.

On Wednesday, Joe Biden warned that the storm is still very dangerous.

As of Wednesday evening, multiple Florida counties are still under evacuation orders.

An official with the Florida Emergency Management Agency said Perry, a historic town of 7,000 people southeast of Tallahassee, was badly affected.

In the town’s quaint downtown, where several businesses caught fire, the hurricane downed powerlines and destroyed stores. During the torrential downpour and powerful winds, the roof of a gas station was knocked over. DeSantis said on Wednesday that recovery efforts are now the state’s primary focus.

“We’re still assessing what’s happening on the ground in the places that were initially affected,” DeSantis said at a Perry news conference.

More than 100 years have passed since Idalia hit this part of Florida.

Over the years, Mayor John Dailey has noticed storms getting worse in Tallahassee.

It does seem that they’re more powerful and bigger, and I think we should think about the environment, global warming, and what we’re doing,” Mr Dailey said.

Although no deaths have been confirmed as a result of the storm, Florida Highway Patrol reports that two men died in car crashes caused by rain.

Casey DeSantis, the wife of Mr DeSantis, wrote on social media that a 100-year-old oak tree fell on the couple’s Tallahassee mansion while she and their three children were inside.