Watch terrifying footage of Hurricane Michael's devastating winds and storm surge


Hurricane Michael made landfall in Florida on Wednesday afternoon, and the results already look catastrophic.
The Category 4 storm rolled in with winds at 155 miles per hour, taking direct aim at Panama City on the Florida panhandle. Winds only a few miles per hour faster would've made Michael a Category 5 storm, and they still tore down this home under construction ahead of the eyewall's arrival on shore, per 7 News Miami.
Michael also brought at least eight feet of storm surge to Apalachicola, Florida, and the waters could grow up to 10 feet deep, CBS News reports. Beach towns across the Florida coast are being swamped in what FEMA Administrator Brock Long called the "most intense" storm to hit the area since 1851.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
As of 5 p.m. Wednesday, Michael was still rolling inland and projected to bring tropical storm conditions as far north as North Carolina, per The National Weather Service. But it's clear the harshest damage will be centered on the Florida coast, as you can tell from this absolutely terrifying footage below. Kathryn Krawczyk
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.
-
Court hands Harvard a win in Trump funding battle
Speed Read The Trump administration was ordered to restore Harvard's $2 billion in research grants
-
Florida aims to end all state vaccine requirements
Speed Read Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. continues to cut vaccine access and install anti-vaccine activists at the FDA and CDC
-
September 4 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Thursday’s political cartoons include Donald Trump hiding in the Oval Office and Jeffrey Epstein survivors
-
At least 800 dead in Afghanistan earthquake
speed read A magnitude 6.0 earthquake hit a mountainous region of eastern Afghanistan
-
Massive earthquake sends tsunami across Pacific
Speed Read Hundreds of thousands of people in Japan and Hawaii were told to evacuate to higher ground
-
FEMA Urban Search and Rescue chief resigns
Speed Read Ken Pagurek has left the organization, citing 'chaos'
-
Wildfires destroy historic Grand Canyon lodge
Speed Read Dozens of structures on the North Rim have succumbed to the Dragon Bravo Fire
-
Search for survivors continues after Texas floods
Speed Read A total of 82 people are confirmed dead, including 28 children
-
EPA is reportedly killing Energy Star program
speed read The program for energy-efficient home appliances has saved consumers billions in energy costs since its 1992 launch
-
US proposes eroding species protections
Speed Read The Trump administration wants to change the definition of 'harm' in the Environmental Protection Act to allow habitat damage
-
Severe storms kill dozens across central US
Speed Read At least 40 people were killed over the weekend by tornadoes, wildfires and dust storms