During the passage of Hurricane Idalia through Florida on Wednesday, a massive oak tree, estimated to be a century-old, fell at the location of Governor Ron DeSantis’ mansion in Tallahassee.
Fortunately, Governor DeSantis’ wife, Casey, and their three children were present at the site when the incident took place, but no injuries were reported.
Casey DeSantis expressed her concern for everyone affected by the storm in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter) that included an image of the split oak tree.
In a storm update on Wednesday, Governor DeSantis referred to the fallen tree as “ancient” and mentioned the possibility of cutting down the entire tree, which would create more space for children to play baseball.
Hurricane Idalia made landfall as a Category 3 storm in the Big Bend area of Florida after impacting Cuba. The storm has been described as “unprecedented” and possibly “catastrophic” by the National Weather Service.
While Tallahassee, where the governor’s mansion is located, was not severely affected by Idalia, the storm caused damage to structures and trees in Leon County, with gusts of up to 30 mph reported.
Governor DeSantis urged Floridians to prioritize their safety during the storm and advised them not to engage in risky behavior. He emphasized the power and potential danger of the storm.
Unfortunately, Hurricane Idalia has already claimed at least two lives, according to CNN.
As of late afternoon on Wednesday, nearly 300,000 customers were without power in Florida due to the storm, as reported by PowerOutage.us.
The storm is now moving into Georgia and is expected to affect South Carolina as well, according to live updates from CNN.