Looking Back on Hurricane Isaias — One Week Later Hurricane #Isaias peaked as a Category 3 major hurricane (105 kt/120 mph, 959 mb) on October 9 as it was closing in on the Florida Panhandle. It weakened thereafter due to increasing wind shear and dry air entrainment. The center made landfall near Destin, Florida, at about 8:30 p.m. CDT on October 9 as a Category 2 (90 kt/105 mph, 971 mb). The leading northern edge of the eyewall reached the Okaloosa Island/Fort Walton Beach area while the storm was still a legitimate Category 3 (100 kt); it then weakened by roughly 10 kt over the final 2.5 hours before the center actually crossed the coast. On a personal note, I was positioned on the narrow and exposed road on Okaloosa Island between Fort Walton Beach and Destin, where wind gusts exceeded 100 mph as the western and southwestern parts of the eyewall moved through. This constituted the 46th U.S. mainland #hurricane eyewall intercept and the 19th major (as it was still a Cat 3 when the aforementioned northern edge moved overhead). The storm produced an unusually broad and asymmetric wind footprint for its official Category 2 landfall intensity. Recorded gusts of 100+ mph occurred from the Pensacola City Hall area to Freeport (~55 nmi along the coast), including within the eyewall and extending well outside it in the western quadrant. In addition, hurricane-force gusts (74+ mph) spanned from Orange Beach, Alabama, to Beacon Hill just east of Mexico Beach (~120 nmi). The peak measured gusts reached 116–118 mph near Oriole Beach and Jay. A sting-jet-like feature on the western edge of the precipitation shield (during the onset of extratropical transition) helped drive the unusually strong western-quadrant winds. These winds caused widespread tree and power-line damage, roof losses on beachfront hotels and other structures, and collapsed gas-station canopies. More than 900,000 customers lost power across Florida, Alabama, and Georgia (peak reports were around 910,000–911,000). Worst of all, at least nine fatalities were confirmed (six in Florida, two in Alabama, and one in South Carolina), mostly from falling trees and related incidents. Storm-surge inundation of roughly 5.6 ft was observed at Panama City Beach. A Flash Flood Emergency was issued for southern Okaloosa County due to torrential rainfall, with widespread 5–8 inch totals and localized amounts exceeding 12 (including over 11 inches near Mary Esther and Fort Walton Beach), producing major freshwater flooding that caused significant damage to homes and businesses in that area. Preliminary estimates of losses surpass $2 billion. For residents of the western Florida Panhandle, Isaias is a storm that will be talked about for generations to come.