“You do not have to evacuate hundreds of miles,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis told residents. He said designated shelters should be able to withstand the hurricane. (Joe Raedle / Getty Images)
By Nick Givas October 9, 2026 at 1:55pm
Florida’s GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis urged state residents who are in the path of Hurricane Isaias to evacuate as it continues to build in the Gulf of America.
“You have final hours to be able to exercise your plan for preparation. If you have been given instructions to evacuate … please heed those instructions,” he said during a Friday news conference at the Escambia County Emergency Operations Center in Pensacola.
“You do not have to evacuate hundreds of miles. You don’t have to evacuate so that you have no impact from the storm at all,” DeSantis added,
“The shelters will be able to withstand the hurricane-force winds. Other places that are not in low-lying areas will be able to get through the storm without being inundated by storm surge. So you can evacuate tens of miles … You do what you think is best.”
Gov. Ron DeSantis delivers a direct message to Floridians in vulnerable coastal zones: “You have final hours to be able to exercise your plan for preparation. If you have been given instructions to evacuate… please heed those instructions.” https://t.co/gl3hzc8D5P
— NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) October 9, 2026
Evacuation zones along the Florida Panhandle and Big Bend are most at risk, as the Category 3 hurricane is set to make landfall, WEAR-TV reported.
Do you trust government officials’ hurricane preparedness plans?
The governor also said that Isaias had sustained winds around 120 mph and warned that in addition to storm surge, flooding, and tornadoes, major power issues should be expected.
“Hide from the wind, but you run from the water,” DeSantis declared, calling storm surge the biggest threat to human life.
The state has prepared millions of meals, 1,000 generators, 500,000 gallons of gasoline, one million gallons of diesel, and over one million bottles of water in anticipation of the storm.
The Associated Press reported that Isaias has “strengthened into a major hurricane and carved a path toward the Alabama-Florida line.”
It was expected to hit land by Friday evening.
The National Hurricane Center’s website described storm surge as posing a “danger of life-threatening inundation, from rising water moving inland from the coastline.”
It also added that the “combination of a dangerous storm surge and the tide will cause normally dry areas near the coast to be flooded by rising waters moving inland from the shoreline.”
Additionally, the hurricane is expected to disrupt U.S. crude oil production, according to CNBC.
It could end up limiting 2 percent of the country’s oil refining capabilities, with fuel markets already in turmoil over the Iran War.
The hurricane did, however, seem to be heading away from the U.S. refining region in southern Louisiana.
Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. Advertise Today.
Nick Givas has been a reporter for The Daily Caller, Fox News, and served as Managing Editor of the Newsroom at Project Veritas. He’s also hosted three different podcasts, served as a Congressional Communications Director, and had his work featured in The Federalist, Daily Signal, New York Post, and Real Clear Politics.
