Michael Roars Ashore in Florida Nearing Cat 5 Status
*By Carlo Versano*
Hurricane Michael made landfall Wednesday as a monster Category 4 storm with winds near Category 5 status. In the process, it became the most powerful hurricane to hit the U.S. mainland in nearly 50 years.
Washington Post weather editor Jason Samenow told Cheddar Wednesday he was tracking confirmed gusts of 130 mph and was deeply concerned about the storm surge and the potential for flooding.
"We're far from done with this storm," he said.
Michael's eyewall came ashore near Mexico Beach, Fla., just outside Panama Beach on the Panhandle.
Even once the storm weakens over Florida, large areas of the southeast that are still recovering from Hurricane Florence will be at great risk of serious flooding. The saturated Carolinas could see three to six inches of rain, and the winds will expand as the storm unwinds.
Reports of damage in the Panhandle area were beginning to come in as of Wednesday afternoon. Hours after the official landfall, the storm has not weakened substantially.
Although Michael is the second major hurricane to make U.S. landfall in roughly one month, Samenow said, "This has been a fairly normal hurricane season."
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/all-eyes-on-hurricane-michael).
A new gel that helps stop bleeding for both emergency care and surgical procedures in animal medicine is being sought for FDA approval for a human version.
In this photo provided by Henry Danner, Omari Maynard sits with his children, Khari, left, and, Anari, holding a photo of their late mother, Shamony Gibson, at home in the Brooklyn borough of New York on April 9, 2022. Gibson passed away in 2019, two weeks after giving birth to Khari due to a pulmonary embolism. “She wasn’t being heard at all,” said Maynard, an artist who now does speaking engagements as a maternal health advocate.
The Environmental Protection Agency has proposed a new plan to lower the cap on the amount of harmful "forever chemicals" allowed in drinking water across the country.
Dr. Joel Salinas, clinical assistant professor of neurology at NYU Langone Health and chief medical officer at Isaac Health, spoke with Cheddar News anchor Shannon LaNier about Alzheimer's disease and struggles to find an effective treatment.
