Hurricane Season 2023

From hurricane weary Florida to the Carolinas, Idalia left a deep imprint along the southeastern US. Digital meteorologist Leslie Hudson takes a look back.

FEMA's decision to boot Cape Coral policy holders from the 25% discount program will have an $8 million impact.

Decision to downgrade unincorporated Lee, Cape Coral, Bonita Springs, and Estero's flood rating will prove costly to policy holders.

A flood insurance issue that could end up costing millions for residents in unincorporated Lee County and several of the county's cities will be aired Tuesday at the Board of County Commissioners meeting.At stake is federal flood insurance community ratings in unincorporated Lee County and multiple municipalities in the county. FEMA confirmed Monday that unpermitted work, lack of documentation, and failure to properly monitor the rebuilding of properties in flood hazard areas in the post-Hurricane Ian world is why the federal government has chosen to significantly downgrade those ratings.That means federal flood insurance policy holders — there are more than 51,000 in unincorporated Lee County alone — will lose their 25 percent discounts on flood insurance premiums come Oct. 1. Some 64,000 policy holders in Bonita Springs, Estero and Cape Coral will no longer quality for the discounts until possibly spring 2026.The matter will be discussed in further detail when the Lee County Board of County Commissioners meet for their regular board meeting at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday.

Crews began adding sand along Sanibel’s coast as part of the Sanibel beach renourishment project. Approximately 400,000 tons of sand will be brought in over the next four months to help replace sand that was pushed off by Hurricane Ian. The first truckloads of sand began arriving on the island Tuesday morning around 6 am.

Non-slip wheelchair beach access mats (Mobi-Mats) have been re-installed at four of the busiest beach accesses on the North end of Estero Island.

This summer brought higher than normal temperatures both on land and in the oceans. According to NASA, July was the hottest month on record, more than 2 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than the historic average for the month, and warmer than any other month in the 143-year record. And those temperatures, at least in part, contributed to this hurricane season tying with 1933 for the 4th most named storms on record. There were 20 named storms, with seven becoming hurricanes, three of which were major hurricanes — including Hurricane Idalia which made landfall in the Big Bend Region on August 30 as a Category 3 storm, bringing significant wind damage and storm surge of 7 to 12 feet to Keaton Beach and surrounding areas. We wrap up the 2023 season, and learn about a project in Cedar Key that's testing what are called 'living shorelines'.

The 2023 Atlantic Hurricane Season officially comes to an end today, concluding six months of above-normal activity.

For a second consecutive hurricane season, Florida took a direct hit from a major storm.But while the 2023 season will end next week, restoration efforts from Hurricane Idalia will continue for years in rural North Florida, particularly for people in the agriculture industry. State lawmakers are expected to see requests for more money. And further tweaks are needed to state and local storm-recovery planning.

If you applied for FEMA assistance, FEMA inspectors may contact you to schedule a home inspection.A FEMA inspection determines whether a home is safe, sanitary, functional and accessible.