People across Florida were told Sunday that Hurricane Milton is rapidly increasing in intensity and will likely become a major hurricane before slamming into the storm-ravaged Gulf Coast midweek.
While forecast models vary widely, the most likely path suggests Milton could make landfall in the Tampa Bay area on Wednesday and remain a hurricane as it moves through central Florida toward the Atlantic Ocean, forecasters said. That would largely spare other southeastern states ravaged by Hurricane Helene, which from Florida caused catastrophic damage in the Appalachians and a death toll that rose to 230 people on Sunday.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said on Sunday that while it remains to be seen where exactly Milton will strike, it is clear that Florida will be hit hard. point.”
Hurricane Milton was about 815 miles (1,310 kilometers) west-southwest of Tampa on Sunday afternoon, with maximum sustained winds of 80 mph (130 kph), the National Hurricane Center said.
“You have time to prepare – all day today, all day Monday, probably all day Tuesday, to make sure your hurricane preparedness plan is in place,” the governor said. “If you’re on the west coast of Florida, the barrier islands, just assume you’ll be asked to leave.”
The St. Petersburg-Tampa Bay area is still cleaning up major damage from Helene and the powerful storm surge. Twelve people died when Helene flooded the coast, with the greatest damage along the narrow, 20-mile (32-kilometer) string of barrier islands stretching from St. Petersburg to Clearwater.
DeSantis expanded his state of emergency to 51 counties on Sunday, saying Floridians should prepare for more power outages and disruptions and make sure they have a week’s worth of food and water and are ready to hit the road. The Federal Emergency Management Agency, meanwhile, coordinated with the governor and briefed President Joe Biden on Sunday on how it has deployed lifesaving resources.
“I strongly encourage you to evacuate” if you are in an evacuation zone, said Kevin Guthrie, executive director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management. “We’re preparing for the largest evacuation we’ve seen, probably since 2017, Hurricane Irma. “
The state has prepared emergency fuel sources and EV charging stations along evacuation routes, and “identified every possible location that could potentially house someone along those routes,” Guthrie said. People who live in homes built after Florida tightened codes in 2004, that don’t rely on constant electricity and that aren’t in evacuation zones should probably avoid the roads, he said.
All classes and school activities in St. Petersburg’s Pinellas County were preemptively closed Monday through Wednesday as Milton approached, and Tampa opened free city garages so people could park their cars safely from the next flood.
As many as 4,000 National Guard troops are helping state crews remove debris, DeSantis said, and he ordered Florida crews sent to North Carolina in the wake of Helene to return to the state to prepare for to prepare for Milton.
“All available state resources … are being marshaled to help remove the debris,” DeSantis said. “We operate 24/7… it’s all hands on deck.”
FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell defended her organization’s response to the hurricane’s devastation after Republicans’ false claims, amplified by former President Donald Trump, caused a wave of misinformation among devastated communities.
“This kind of rhetoric doesn’t help people and it’s really a shame that we put politics over helping people,” Criswell told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos. It has created fear and distrust among residents toward the thousands of FEMA workers and volunteers on the ground in the Southeast, she said.
Still, Criswell said the agency is already preparing for Milton long before it is clear where exactly it will move across the Florida peninsula this week. “We are working with the state there to understand what their demands will be so that we can implement them before landfall,” she said.
Federal disaster assistance has surpassed $137 million since Helene struck more than a week ago, one of the largest mobilizations of personnel and resources in recent history, FEMA said Sunday.
Approximately 1,500 active-duty troops, more than 6,100 National Guardsmen and nearly 7,000 federal workers have been deployed, shipping more than 14.9 million meals, 13.9 million gallons of water, 157 generators and 505,000 sails, along with approving more than $30 million in housing and other assistance for more than 27,000 households, according to FEMA, the White House and the Department of Defense.
More than 800 people who cannot return home are staying in shelters provided by FEMA, and 22 shelters continue to house nearly 1,000 people while mobile food operations continue to assist survivors. The response to Helene will not slow down during Milton and its aftermath because FEMA has the capacity to handle multiple disasters simultaneously, the agency said.
“My administration is sparing no resources to support families as they begin their path to rebuilding,” Biden said. “We will continue to work hand-in-hand with local and state leaders – regardless of political party and however long it takes.”
The hurricane center said Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, the Florida Peninsula, the Florida Keys and the northwestern Bahamas should monitor the system’s progress. Heavy rain was expected Sunday ahead of the storm itself, and will then likely combine with rainfall from Milton to flood waterways and streets in Florida, where forecasters said up to 12 inches of rain could fall in some places through Wednesday night could fall.
Meanwhile, in the open Atlantic Ocean, Hurricane Kirk weakened to a Category 2 hurricane on Sunday, with top winds of 100 mph (165 km per hour), sending large swells and “life-threatening surf and current conditions” toward Bermuda and northward across the U.S. and the U.S. Canadian coasts, the center said. Hurricane Leslie also moved across the Atlantic Ocean, far from land, with top winds of 90 miles per hour.
Download the FREE WPXI News App for the latest news alerts.
Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook And Tweet. | Check out WPXI NOW
TRENDING NOW:
AP Top 25: Pitt Earns Spot After Defeating UNC Man Shot in the Head Early Sunday Morning in Pittsburgh ‘American Pickers’ Frank Fritz’s Cause of Death Revealed VIDEO: Former President Trump Returns to Butler Farm Show Nearly Three Months After Assassination Attempt DOWNLOAD Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts
