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Donald Trump is reportedly riding out Hurricane Nicole at his Mar-a-Lago residence as the storm made landfall along Florida's east coast early Thursday.
Nicole, which arrived as a Category 1 storm but has since been downgraded to a tropical storm, has prompted the closure of schools, airports and theme parks in several Florida counties.
Ahead of the storm's landfall, mandatory evacuation orders were issued for several coastal areas, including the former president's Palm Beach club and home—built about a quarter-mile inland from the ocean.
Trump did not plan to leave, although the club is closed, an adviser told The Washington Post.
Trump hosted an election night watch party at Mar-a-Lago and later conceded the results of Tuesday's midterm elections were "somewhat disappointing."
The club was evacuated, and staff were sent home on Wednesday, Page Six reported. It isn't expected to reopen until Friday, ahead of Tiffany Trump's wedding at the weekend.
All flights in and out of Palm Beach International Airport, located just a few miles from Mar-a-Lago, have been canceled, airport officials said on Wednesday.
Nicole made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane on North Hutchinson Island, just south of Vero Beach, according to the Miami-based National Hurricane Center (NHC).
But at 4 a.m EST, the center said it was now a tropical storm with maximum sustained winds of 70 mph (110 km/h) and that it was moving toward the west-northwest at 14 mph (22 km/h).
Nicole is expected to weaken while moving across Florida and the southeastern United States through Friday, and it is likely to become a post-tropical cyclone by Friday afternoon, the NHC said.
Videos on social media show Nicole battering a large area of Florida with strong winds, dangerous storm surge, and heavy rain.
Meanwhile, more than 175,000 homes and businesses in Florida are without power, according to utility tracker poweroutage.us.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said significant power outages could occur during a news conference in Tallahassee on Wednesday. He said 16,000 linemen were on standby to restore power, as well as 600 guardsmen and seven search and rescue teams.
Kevin Guthrie, the director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management, urged Floridians to hunker down as Nicole could cause coastal flooding, storm surge, beach erosion, heavy rain and isolated tornadoes.
"Due to the size of the storm, strong wind gusts will be felt across the entire peninsula," Guthrie said.
"There is a high risk of rip currents statewide. Please I beg you, do not enter the water during these unsafe conditions. Rip currents are often overlooked, but are deadly."
DeSantis also signed an order, expanding the number of Florida counties under a state of emergency to 45, with many still reeling from the devastation caused by Hurricane Ian after it hit Florida's southwestern coast as a Category 4 storm on September 28.
About the writer
Khaleda Rahman is Newsweek's National Correspondent based in London, UK. Her focus is reporting on education and national news. Khaleda ... Read more