As Hurricane Milton barrels towards Florida, a mass exodus is underway, with residents heeding the warnings of what is predicted to be a catastrophic storm. The urgency is palpable as people across the state are making the difficult decision to leave their homes, hoping to find safety away from the storm’s path.
On Tuesday Governor Ron DeSantis warned, “You have time today. Time is running out.”
Sarasota Mayor Liz Alpert said she’s confident her constituents understand the consequences of not evacuating.
“What everyone has been saying is, you have to evacuate, it is not survivable, to survive a 10- to 15-foot storm surge,” Alpert told NBC News on Tuesday. “It just simply isn’t.”
Hurricane Milton, described as “destructive” and “explosive,” has prompted authorities to open shelters across all 67 counties in Florida. The storm’s rapid intensification has set records, becoming one of the Atlantic’s most powerful hurricanes on record. With sustained winds of 180 mph, it’s a stark reminder of nature’s force and the increasing frequency of such intense weather events. The Washington Post says it “could be the strongest storm in a century” to hit the Tampa Bay region.
Milton’s tropical storm-force winds extended about 80 miles from its center most of Monday, but its wind field grew to just over 100 miles this morning. “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. “The official forecast shows the hurricane and tropical storm-force winds roughly doubling in size by the time it makes landfall.”
The storm is forecast to make landfall late Wednesday as a Category 3 hurricane on Florida’s Gulf Coast. Its dangerous eye and eyewall could come ashore anywhere from Cedar Key in the north to Naples in the south, possibly in the Tampa or Fort Myers areas.
The scenes of evacuation are a sobering sight: highways overflowing with vehicles, families carrying their most precious belongings, and the shared anxiety of an uncertain future.
The destruction that Milton may wreak is all the more tragic after the devastation brought just this past week by Hurricane Helene. In its wake, the state is already facing a daunting recovery ahead. What’s more, the debris from the previous hurricane is still being cleared as Milton approaches, adding to the challenges faced by emergency services and residents alike.
The National Hurricane Center has issued warnings of up to 15 feet of storm surge, a life-threatening phenomenon that can lead to devastating flooding. Tampa, among other cities on the Gulf Coast, is bracing for the impact, with local officials issuing stark warnings to those in evacuation zones.
It’s difficult to argue that climate change is not the cause of the increasing intensity and frequency of such storms. The record-warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico have contributed to Milton’s rapid growth, a clear sign of the changing climate and its impact on our weather systems.
Adding to the woes of Florida’s residents as they evacuate is the shortage of gas. “Lines at gas stations have been long. Gas stations are running out quicker than they otherwise would” said Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
To alleviate the shortage, the state is sending fuel from its own reserves to stations to resupply them, including more than 100,000 gallons of gasoline. 1.2 million additional gallons of gasoline and diesel are on the way to the state, the governor said in a Tuesday morning news conference.
“We have been dispatching fuel over the past 24 hours as gas stations have run out,” DeSantis said.
Those fleeing are praying that they will still have a home to return to once Milton spends its fury and roars out to sea.
