Hurricane Isaias made landfall near Destin, Florida, Friday night as a Category 2 storm, cutting power to roughly 425,000 residents and prompting Lt. Gov. Jay Collins to describe the storm’s arrival in blunt terms.
“This thing hit like a freight train. It was fast. It came in like a Mike Tyson punch,” Collins told Fox News Friday night. “It’s real, I’m sure there is going to be real damage.”
Collins said an estimated 900,000 people evacuated ahead of the storm’s path. He urged anyone who stayed behind to shelter in place rather than venture out.
“While some might have ridden it out, if you have please hunker down, stay safe, let’s not put our first responders at risk and they’ll get to you as soon as humanly possible, but let’s let them do their job and remain safe as well.”
The National Weather Service downgraded Isaias to a Category 1 storm around 10:30 p.m. Friday, with maximum sustained winds of 90 mph.
Collins drew a contrast with Hurricane Michael, the Category 5 storm that devastated the Panhandle on Oct. 10, 2018. “I don’t think we’re going to have a Michael-like event here, we’re its just going to sit and have pockets of rain, thank goodness,” he said.
As of 2 a.m. Saturday, power outages and radio damage were the only impacts reported, according to Collins. PowerOutage.US tracked about 425,000 Floridians without electricity at that hour.
“The real extent of the damage as this thing crested and it hit shore, I think you’ll start to see good feedback coming through. We’re not hearing anything dire at this moment, God willing thats how it stays.”
Collins, who has held office since August 2025, credited the state’s evacuation push for limiting the storm’s toll on residents.
“We pushed really hard to have people listen to the evacuation orders, its just not worth the risk to you and yours. You got to listen, got to lead and you’re going to live. It’s that simple.”
He also praised the state’s preparation efforts alongside Gov. Ron DeSantis. “We’ve led from the front. We have prioritized response in making sure we are on top of this,” Collins said.
More than 5,000 National Guard members were placed on standby, along with 400 state guard personnel. Over 6,000 utility vehicles and crews were staged to begin restoring power across the Panhandle.
Collins warned residents that danger doesn’t end once the winds die down. “You got to remind people, once the storm is passed the risk is not over,” he said. “Don’t go out there, don’t get in water puddles or exposed water. Look out for power lines and remain safe. Use extreme caution.”
