A 100-year-old oak tree falls on the Florida governor's mansion, Casey DeSantis says
A 100-year-old oak tree fell on the governor's mansion in Tallahassee, Florida, as Hurricane Idalia made landfall in the area, said Casey DeSantis, the wife of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
The state's first lady said she was inside the mansion with their three children, Madison, Mason and Mamie, when it happened, but no one was injured.
"Our prayers are with everyone impacted by the storm," she wrote in a tweet, sharing a photo of the giant tree that had split through its trunk.
100 year old oak tree falls on the Governor’s Mansion in Tallahassee — Mason, Madison, Mamie and I were home at the time, but thankfully no one was injured.
— Casey DeSantis (@CaseyDeSantis) August 30, 2023
Our prayers are with everyone impacted by the storm. pic.twitter.com/l6MOE8wNMC
The original mansion, which is just blocks from the Florida State Capitol, was built in 1907 and then rebuilt in 1955 after it had become structurally unsound. It is on the National Register of Historic Places and was designed by Palm Beach architect Sims Wyeth in a Greek Revival style.
The governor, who is also a GOP candidate for president, moved into the mansion with his family when he was elected to the office in 2019. DeSantis has been giving regular news conferences from Tallahassee during the storm, and said he had been informed about the tree's collapse.
By midday Wednesday, the eye of the storm had moved on from Florida to Georgia, but the storm's bands were still impacting the state, particularly in the north, and flooding was expected to worsen as the tide rose Wednesday afternoon. Thousands of people were without power.
People in 28 Florida counties were either ordered or recommended to evacuate ahead of Idalia, primarily along the Gulf Coast in areas at the highest risk of extreme floods from the storm.
The storm made landfall as a Category 3 Wednesday morning at Keaton Beach in the Big Bend area — the region where the Florida peninsula meets the panhandle. Keaton Beach is about 90 minutes from Tallahassee.
Storm surge in some areas was expected to reach as high as 12 to 16 feet, the National Hurricane Center said. Videos and photos showed the rushing floodwaters rising in coastal neighborhoods.
Seeing reports of damage around town, like this downed tree on Buck Lake (since cleared). Stay safe. Response crews are working as swiftly as safely possible. #IdaliaTLH #Idalia pic.twitter.com/KKfuaJCZqA
— City of Tallahassee (@CityofTLH) August 30, 2023
Tallahassee, which is in the northern part of the state, is not an evacuation zone. The storm, however, passed over that area, causing damage like downed trees.
National Weather Service Tallahassee warned about flash flooding in nearby Valdosta, Remerton and Dasher, Georgia. The City of Tallahassee also warned of power outages that may impact traffic signals.
Tallahassee had been forecast to receive wind gusts up to 35 mph during the storm and the National Weather Service warned of the risk of damage and potentially impassable roads due to downed trees and debris.
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Caitlin O'Kane is a digital content producer covering trending stories for CBS News and its good news brand, The Uplift.