Florida is bracing for a direct hit by Hurricane Milton on Wednesday, the second hurricane to hit the state in less than two weeks.
With evacuation orders in place for multiple Florida counties, government officials have morbid warnings for those who choose to stay home.
What Happened: Hurricane Milton reached Category 5 status Monday before being downgraded to a Category 4 storm Tuesday. The hurricane is expected to reach Category 5 status again Tuesday and double in size.
Hurricane experts say Milton could be one of the most devastating storms to make landfall in the United States. The storm’s winds of 180 miles per hour make Milton the strongest storm on the planet in 2024.
"Milton is still a relatively compact hurricane, but the wind field is expected to continue to grow in size as it approaches Florida," the National Hurricane Center said Tuesday, as reported by CNN. "The official forecast shows the hurricane and tropical storm-force winds roughly doubling in size by the time it makes landfall.
Winds of over 100 miles per hour are expected in Florida along with a storm surge that could be 10 feet to 15 feet.
Of the five most populous Florida cities (Jacksonville, Miami, Tampa, Orlando, St. Petersburg), four are located in counties that have evacuation orders in place, with only Jacksonville not on the list. With the highly population regions and numerous counties on the list, Milton is driving the most evacuations in the state since 2017.
These expected conditions have led to evacuation orders for multiple counties listed below. Some of the counties have mandatory evacuation orders, while others have voluntary evacuation orders or evacuation orders for those in mobile homes. All information is according to floridadisaster.org:
- Charlotte County – mandatory
- Citrus County – mandatory
- Clay County – information
- Collier County – mandatory
- Desoto County – information
- Dixie County – voluntary
- Glades County – voluntary
- Hardee County – information
- Hernando County – mandatory
- Hillsborough County – mandatory
- Lee County – mandatory
- Levy County – mandatory
- Manatee County – mandatory
- Marion County – information
- Miami-Dade County – voluntary
- Okeechobee County – voluntary
- Pasco County – mandatory
- Pinellas County – mandatory
- Putnam County – information
- Sarasota County – information
- Sumter County – information
- Volusia County – mandatory
Tampa Mayor Jane Castor has a warning for those in evacuation order zones who choose to stay in the path of Hurricane Milton.
"I can say without any dramatization whatsoever: If you choose to stay in one of those evacuation areas, you're going to die," Castor said on CNN Monday.
Hurricane Helene may have been a "wake-up call," but the threat from Milton is "literally catastrophic,” Castor said.
Tampa is located in Hillsborough County, one of the areas with evacuation orders in place for mobile home owners and residents in specific zones.
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody also offered a dire warning to those choosing not to evacuate the areas Milton is expected to impact.
"You probably need to write your name in permanent marker on your arm, so that people know who you are when they get to you afterwards," Moody said, as shared by ABC.
Read Also: NASA And SpaceX Delay Crew 8 Mission’s Return As Hurricane Milton Nears Florida Coast
Why It's Important: The timing of Hurricane Milton is placing a toll on Florida as the state already has its hands full cleaning up from the devastation of Hurricane Helene.
The state is working round the clock to clean up debris left from Helene.
With many residents evacuating the state, gas stations in the state are running out of fuel, with the state working to resupply them.
"We have been dispatching fuel over the past 24 hours as gas stations have run out," Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said, as reported by CNN.
Uber Technologies UBER has partnered with the Florida Division of Emergency Management to help Florida residents flee to safety. The ride-share company is offering free rides to residents from evacuating counties to state-approved shelters.
With hundreds of thousands of people evacuating, the state has warned of traffic congestion and is allowing residents the ability to drive on the shoulder of the road to help more cars exit impacted areas quicker.
More than 200 people have died from Hurricane Helene and the aftermath of the storm, including 20 in the state of Florida. The state is working on preparations to limit the number of casualties from the devastation predicted from Hurricane Milton.
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Photo generated using artificial intelligence via MidJourney.
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