Hurricane Milton is currently predicted to make landfall on Wednesday at 8:00 p.m. in Florida with wind gusts raging at over 100 mph according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC). Originally forecasters predicted the storm would be a category 3 but has intensified to a category 5, the strongest designation on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.
“Milton poses an extremely serious threat to Florida,” the National Hurricane Center said late Tuesday morning. “Today is the last full day for Florida residents to get their families and their homes ready and evacuate if told to do so by local officials.”
The storm is expected to impact the Tampa Bay area approximately two weeks after Hurricane Helene devastated states on the east coast.
“Prepare quickly and get out of the city. What we have said before still holds true. You hide from the wind and run from the water and you don’t have to run far,” Tampa Bay Mayor Jane Castor (D) told reporters at a briefing Tuesday morning.
“You don’t have to go to another state, you just have to get to higher ground. But this is going to be an event like none other.”
The NHC issued a storm surge warning emphasizing the danger of life-threatening inundation, from rising water moving inland from the coastline, during the next 36 hours in the indicated locations.
The agency is predicting rainfall amounts of 6 to 12 inches, with localized totals up to 18 inches, across central to northern portions of the Florida Peninsula through Thursday. The rainfall could cause catastrophic flash and urban flooding, along with major river flooding.
NHC also said a few tornadoes could potentially pass over central and southern Florida beginning late Tuesday night and continuing through early Thursday morning.
As threats mount, resources are nimble. More than 43 percent of the stations in the Tampa-St. Petersburg area had no gasoline as of late Tuesday morning, according to GasBuddy.
Tampa International Airport halted flights Tuesday morning in addition to St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport which shut down in the afternoon, according to the Associated Press.
Orlando’s airport plans to cease flights on Wednesday morning and local theme parks like Walt Disney World, Universal and SeaWorld will close.
President Joe Biden has also canceled his trip to Germany and Angola to ensure he is present to help federal response teams provide resources to Milton’s victims.
“Given the projected trajectory and strength of Hurricane Milton, President Biden is postponing his upcoming trip to Germany and Angola in order to oversee preparations for and the response to Hurricane Milton, in addition to the ongoing response to the impacts of Hurricane Helene across the Southeast,” press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.