Florida confirms six deaths linked to Hurricane Isaias

Florida governor Ron DeSantis confirmed that six people had died in the state in connection with Hurricane Isaias, according to reports published on October 13 and 14, 2026. The total included two deaths previously confirmed, as authorities continued to report the storm's consequences.¹²

Deaths linked to several hazards

The two previously confirmed deaths occurred in Escambia County, according to the Straits Times. One person died after a tree fell onto their home. Another died from carbon monoxide exposure after a generator was operated inside a garage, the newspaper reported.²

The Guardian also reported a fatality involving a tree falling onto a home and said a person had been found dead in an Escambia County garage where a generator was running. Its account did not specify carbon monoxide as the cause of that death.¹²

Among the four newly confirmed deaths was a person killed in a car crash at an intersection with a non-functioning traffic signal, according to the Straits Times. The newspaper also reported that storm-related interruptions to medical treatment caused two deaths.²

DeSantis credited precautions taken by residents and the work of local officials with helping keep the death toll below that of previous storms, the Guardian reported. He praised officials for communicating warnings and residents for acting on them.¹

Power cuts across four states

Isaias made landfall early on Saturday, according to the Straits Times. The newspaper reported that hundreds of thousands of residents across Florida, Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi lost electricity. It also reported Alabama governor Kay Ivey's announcement that two people had died from the storm in her state.²

In its October 13 report, the Guardian said about 5,000 people in Florida were still without power in an area north-west of the storm's landfall. Free supplies were being made available at distribution sites for residents affected by the hurricane, it reported.¹

A late first Atlantic hurricane

According to the Guardian, Isaias was the 2026 Atlantic season's inaugural hurricane, with a powerful El Niño responsible for the relative lack of storms. It reported that the first hurricane of a season had not formed so late since October 8, 1905.¹

The newspaper also reported that Isaias was the first hurricane to reach the continental United States in two years, following Milton's landfall in western Florida in October 2024. The Guardian said parts of the south-eastern United States faced heavy gusts and rainfall, along with the risk of sudden flooding and tornadoes.¹