Hurricane Idalia forms as Florida's Gulf Coast braces for direct hit
Hurricane Idalia formed early Tuesday and was expected to “rapidly intensify” ahead of a projected landfall along Florida’s Gulf Coast this week as a major Category 3 hurricane, according to the National Hurricane Center. Idalia (pronounced ee-DAHL-ya) was 370 miles south-southwest of Tampa Bay as of 5 a.m. Tuesday, traveling north at 14 mph, with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph. “Rapid ...