In Photos: Hurricane Idalia makes landfall on Florida's west coast

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Pic/AFP

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Idalia came ashore in the lightly populated Big Bend region, where the Florida Panhandle curves into the peninsula

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Florida residents living in vulnerable coastal areas were ordered to pack up and leave as Idalia gained strength in the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico

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And those who didn't were warned to find a safe place while the storm moves through

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Storm surge could rise as high as 15 feet (4.5 metres) in some places

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The National Weather Service in Tallahassee called Idalia "an unprecedented event" since no major hurricanes on record have ever passed through the bay abutting the Big Bend