Evacuees from Taylor County fear the worst, find shelter from Idalia in Tallahassee

Harold Weaver has spent 55 of his 60 years in Taylor County. He's weathered storms, big and small, but he's not taking a chance with Hurricane Idalia.

"This one is too big," Weaver said.

Weaver didn't want to risk staying in his apartment behind the sawmill in Perry, Florida, which is just 20 miles from the Gulf of Mexico. He has his 4-year-old grandson, Karim, to worry about.

"I had a gut feeling, I need to get out," Weaver said of his home in the rural coastal county that has become ground zero for a likely catastrophic Category-4 landfall.

He and his family took a shuttle from Perry to Tallahassee to weather the storm in one of the seven shelters in Tallahassee, Florida's capital city. Franklin, Wakulla and Taylor counties, coastal areas on Apalachee Bay in the Big Bend region, did not have shelters available for evacuees, which forced some Floridians who live on the Gulf to travel hours to Tallahassee.

"Due to the projected path of the storm and its projected strength, Wakulla County Emergency Management has made the determination that there will be no shelters open in Wakulla County," stated a post by the Wakulla County Sheriff's Office. "The facilities in Wakulla County which are used for shelters are not rated to withstand the potential effects of a Category 3 storm to our county. Simply put it is potentially unsafe for Wakulla County shelters to be utilized."

The Big Bend of Florida, where the Panhandle meets the peninsula, has been historically spared from strong storms.

More: Live Idalia updates for Tallahassee: Leon County issues mandatory evacuation for mobile homes

During a press conference at the state's Emergency Operations Center on Tuesday evening, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said a storm of this magnitude has not hit the area since the late 1800s.

"It is likely to cause a lot of damage. That is just a reality. So prepare for that," said DeSantis, who has stepped back this week from campaigning for the Republican nomination for president to manage the state's response to Idalia.

On Tuesday afternoon, Hurricane Idalia's outer bands started whipping Florida's southwest coast and the storm hit wind speeds of 100 mph.

Residents of Florida's Gulf Coast and Big Bend areas were urged to prepare for their final storm plans, whether those are evacuating or preparing their property.

Leon County has opened shelters for neighboring counties for previous storms in the Big Bend region, including Hurricane Michael in 2018 and Hurricane Hermine in 2016.

"The storm is unprecedented, but the way we receive our coastal communities is not,” said Matt Cavell, a spokesperson for Leon County.

Seven school campuses across the Leon County School District were staffed with teachers and staff who volunteered to help check in evacuees and operate the shelters through the night.

As of midnight, there are 314 people in shelters. There is space for 2,279 people across all the shelters that are open at this time.

"Most people have no idea the great responsibility our public schools have to provide shelter and keep people safe during a major storm or hurricane. I am so grateful to our school administrators and support staff who have stepped up to volunteer and man our emergency shelters," said Superintendent Rocky Hanna.

Forrest Allen and his wife Sheila traveled to Rickards High School on Tuesday afternoon from Taylor County after they enforced a mandatory evacuation order and closed shelters.

"We have an old house and it's not in the best condition, and we did the best we could with boarding up the windows, but we really don't know where we stand," Forrest Allen told USA TODAY NETWORK-Florida while settling in for the night in the Rickards' gym.

The Allens will spend their 49th wedding anniversary Wednesday, sheltering from the storm that they fear will destroy their home. Forrest, who is wheelchair bound due to health conditions, said he would sleep on a cot for the night alongside his wife in the gym and hope for the best.

"I'm hoping we can leave here tomorrow in time to celebrate," Allen said. "We don't have insurance on the house, but of course we're hoping if there is some damage that FEMA can help us."

Keith Isaacs sat in the Rickards gym with only a guitar he intended to sell after he evacuated from the coastal area of Wakulla County.

"I have a very old trailer and it will probably be demolished. I probably won't have any place to go after the storm rolls in," Isaacs said.

He sang and played his guitar as an attempt to lift the spirits of those in the gym with the same sense of fear.

"I got a good feeling that this storm at a Category Three, it will probably destroy everything," Isaacs said with guitar in hand.

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Ana Goñi-Lessan is the State Watchdog Reporter for USA TODAY - Florida and can be reached at AGoniLessan@tallahassee.com. Follow her on Twitter @goni_lessan. Alaijah Brown is with the Tallahassee Democrat and can be reached at ABrown1@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Evacuees from rural counties find shelter from Idalia in Tallahassee