Video Shows Waves 'Batter' Key West as Hurricane Idalia Passes

Videos shared on social media show large waves "batter" parts of the Key West in Florida as Hurricane Idalia moves closer to Florida.

"#Idalia's large waves are already starting to batter Key West – have a look:" The Weather Channel wrote on X, formerly Twitter, sharing a video showing large waves crashing on the shore in Key West.

Paul Dellegatto of WTVT news in Tampa Bay also shared a similar video showing flooding in the Key West from large waves and wrote, "Well east of the center, winds and water level on the increase in Key West."

The videos come as Idalia, which was upgraded to a hurricane on Tuesday morning, moves closer to Florida and could be further upgraded to a Category 3 storm in the next few days.

"On the forecast track, the center of Idalia is forecast to move over the eastern Gulf of Mexico today, reach the Gulf coast of Florida within the Hurricane Warning area on Wednesday, and move close to the Carolina coastline on Thursday," the National Hurricane Center said. "Data from a NOAA Hurricane Hunter aircraft indicate that maximum sustained winds have increased to near 80 mph (130 km/h) with higher gusts. Rapid intensification is likely through landfall, and Idalia is forecast to become an extremely dangerous major hurricane before landfall on Wednesday."

In addition to high wind speeds and heavy rainfall, storm surge from Hurricane Idalia could be exacerbated by a supermoon and a king tide. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), king tides happen when "the orbits and alignment of the Earth, moon, and sun combine to produce the greatest tidal effects of the year." King tides happen once or twice every year in coastal areas.

The National Weather Service in Tampa Bay, Florida, said on X that potential impacts from Idalia include "8-12' storm surge further north, 4-7' Tampa Bay," "4-8" rain with locally higher amounts," possible tornadoes and hurricane force winds.

On Monday, the Florida Division of Emergency Management announced that following a request from Governor Ron DeSantis, "the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has granted a pre-landfall emergency declaration for Tropical Storm Idalia."

"Floridians are encouraged to monitor weather conditions and listen to all orders from local officials, as well as have emergency contact lists updated and important documents backed up and stored in a waterproof protective container," the agency said in a press release.

Newsweek reached out to the Florida Division of Emergency Management via email for comment.