pair Julio-Cesar Chavez and Octavio Jones
More than a million people were ordered to evacuate on Tuesday as Hurricane Milton approaches the west coast of Florida, still shaken by Helene’s passage less than two weeks ago.
Milton is expected to make landfall late Wednesday or early Thursday near Tampa Bay, home to more than three million people.
Tampa Mayor Jane Castor warned area residents not to evacuate before the hurricane arrives.
“If you choose to stay in one of the areas (where an evacuation has been ordered), you are going to die,” she said.
Estephani Veliz Hernandez said she and her family gathered up their pets and took only their important papers and cash before heading to the homes of family members living inland.
“We’re leaving everything behind. We’re just trying to get to safety,” she said. “If anything happens, if God decides, at least we will all be together.”
With winds blowing up to 270 km/h, the United States National Hurricane Center (NHC) on Tuesday again classified the hurricane as category 5 on the Saffir-Simpson scale, the highest, after the having downgraded to category 4 earlier today.
“Milton’s winds are expected to strengthen as the hurricane approaches Florida. Official forecasts show that winds are expected to double in strength by (Milton) making landfall,” the NHC said.
At 4:00 p.m. CDT (9:00 p.m. GMT), Milton’s “eye” was located 775km southwest of Tampa.
The NHC predicts storm surge of up to 10 to 15 feet along a portion of the coastline north and south of Tampa Bay.
US President Joe Biden called on those affected by evacuation orders to leave immediately, saying it was a matter of life and death.
Fueled by warm waters from the Gulf of Mexico, Milton quickly strengthened, going from a tropical storm to a Category 5 hurricane in less than 24 hours, according to the NHC.
It is expected to remain an extremely dangerous hurricane until it reaches Florida, where it could cause significant damage and power outages.
Milton arrives a few days after Hurricane Helene which swept across the southeast of the United States and already caused at least five billion dollars in insured losses according to AM Best analysts.
(and Rich McKay in Atlanta and Brendan O’Brien in Chicago, with contributions from Brad Brooks, Sarah Moreland, David Alire, Andy Sullivan and Doina Chiacu, written by Joseph Ax and Daniel Trotta; French version Camille Raynaud)
