Hurricane Milton threatens Florida, which did not have time to heal its wounds after Helene hit at the end of September. The new storm intensified on Monday after passing along the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico. Public authorities are calling on the population to leave exposed areas.
Once classified in category 5, the highest, the storm was downgraded to 4 and should move to level 3 when it hits the southwest of the American state during the night from Wednesday to Thursday. The heavily urbanized Florida coast is particularly fragile.
Milton remains extremely dangerous, according to American meteorologists. The authorities, including President Joe Biden, increased calls on Tuesday to evacuate. The tenant of the White House even postponed his trips to Germany and Angola indefinitely to be present in his country at the end of the week.
>> Also listen to the explanations in the 7:30 p.m.:
A region that has not yet recovered
On Treasure Island, residents are preparing for the arrival of this new hurricane while the damage from the previous one is still visible.
“I would say that the most important problem we will have to face this time will be the strength of the wind”, maintains David Levitsky in the 7:30 p.m.
“Many people have placed a lot of things in front of their house. These will simply fuel the wind which will blow along the street and hit who knows what,” worries the retiree.
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Strong winds and heavy rain
Interviewed in Forum, MeteoSwiss meteorologist Josué Gehring lists the factors that make Hurricane Milton particularly dangerous.
He first cites winds which could reach between 200 and 250 km/h. He also mentions the temporary rise in sea level, to around 4.5 meters. Waves and precipitation must also be taken into account. “Approximately 300 mm of precipitation will fall over a very large area,” he specifies. “As described by the American media, this situation is catastrophic for the residents there,” says Josué Gehring.
Web text: Antoine Michel
TV topics: Marc Julmy, Karima Benamrouche
Comments by Josué Gehring collected by Coraline Pauchard and Coralie Claude
Comments by Martine Rebetez collected by Philippe Revaz
