Tropical Storm Debby updates: 4 dead in Florida as storm moves on to Georgia, South Carolina
4 deaths attributed to Hurricane Debby in Florida
Gov. Ron DeSantis will travel Tuesday to areas hit by Hurricane Debby, as flood risks increase from the storm dumping rain in North Florida and Georgia. Debby made landfall about 7 a.m. Monday as a Category 1 storm in Steinhatchee in Taylor County. As forecast, it produced large amounts of rain and storm surge without packing catastrophic winds. The system slowed once overland and inched across the Georgia border at 7 mph in a north-northeast direction.
At least four deaths in Florida have been attributed to Hurricane Debby, now downgraded to a tropical storm, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced during a news conference Monday afternoon.
Hurricane Debby made landfall in Florida's Big Bend Region, near Steinhatchee, around 7 a.m. as a Category 1 hurricane, according to officials. It was not that far from where Hurricane Idalia made landfall in August 2023.
Here is what we know about the reported deaths.
DIXIE COUNTY
Two people – a woman and a child – were killed in Dixie County late Saturday evening and the deteriorating weather is believed to have been a factor in the crash, according to Florida Highway Patrol.
FHP said in its crash report that the driver of an SUV appeared to lose control of the vehicle near U.S. 19 and 483rd Avenue and struck a guardrail in the center median before flipping over.
A 38-year-old woman and a 12-year-old child were killed. A 14-year-old boy was also injured in that crash. All three were from Crawfordville, a small town south of Tallahasee.
Hurricane Debby had not yet made landfall at the time of the crash, but the storm's outer bands were beginning to impact large portions of the state.
LEVY COUNTY
A 13-year-old died early Monday morning after a tree fell onto a mobile home in Levy County and crushed the teen, according to the Levy County Sheriff's Office.
Levy County deputies responded to the home in Fanning Springs around 8 a.m.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with this family as they deal with this tragedy. We encourage everyone to use extreme caution as they begin to assess and clean up the damage," the Levy County Sheriff's Office said on Facebook.
"Downed powerlines and falling trees are among the many hazards. One life is too many. Please be safe."
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY
The driver of a semi truck died early Monday morning after the truck went over a guardrail on Interstate 75, near Tampa, and into the Tampa Bypass Canal, according to Hillsborough County Fire Rescue and Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office.
The initial 911 call came in around 2:30 a.m. It happened near southbound I-75 and milemarker 263.
Stay with FOX 35 News for additional updates.