Still Reeling From Helene, Florida Prepares for Hurricane Milton

Florida is bracing for another hurricane as Milton is forecast to remain a major hurricane before making landfall on Florida’s Gulf Coast this week.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has declared a State of Emergency for 51 of the state’s 67 counties, and emergency management officials are preparing for large-scale evacuations.

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) is forecasting Milton will hit landfall near or south of the Tampa metro as Category 3 (or higher).

By Monday morning, NHC warned that Milton had intensified into a category 4 hurricane, and the maximum sustained winds had increased to 150 mph.

8:05 AM CDT Monday Update: Milton rapidly intensifies into a category 4 hurricane. The maximum sustained winds have now increased to 150 mph (240 km/h) and the minimum pressure has fallen to 940 mb. pic.twitter.com/wlJXbB5lkr

— National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) October 7, 2024

Hurricane Milton will become a category 5 before the end of the day.

This is going to be disastrous for the west coast of Florida even if the intensity drops just before landfall.

Hurricanes have rarely directly impacted Tampa Bay from the west, but it did happen in 1848. pic.twitter.com/QyqESF2yEi

— James Bryant (@KATVJames) October 7, 2024

Governor DeSantis updated Floridians:

Hurricane Milton has strengthened into a major hurricane and is expected to make landfall on the west coast of Florida as soon as Wednesday evening. @FLSERT is addressing more than 600 resource requests from communities in the storm’s path. We are deploying truckloads of food and water, ambulances, Starlinks, and more than 2,000 feet of flood protection systems to protect critical infrastructure in Central Florida and the Tampa Bay area. We are also amassing an additional 1.5 million gallons of fuel reserves and staging them to be utilized as needed.

Local officials and their vendors must continue clearing debris from Hurricane Helene, before Hurricane Milton makes landfall. The state of Florida has marshaled unprecedented resources to help with debris removal. The Division of Emergency Management, Florida Department of Transportation, Florida National Guard, Florida State Guard, and the Florida Highway Patrol have been activated and deployed to aid in this mission. Nearly 9,000 cubic yards have been removed from the barrier islands of Pinellas County, and the work will continue for as long as it’s safe to do so.

As per my Executive Order on Saturday, local landfill and dump sites must remain open 24/7 to safely dispose of debris from Hurricane Helene. We have no time for bureaucracy and red tape.

Hurricane Milton has strengthened into a major hurricane and is expected to make landfall on the west coast of Florida as soon as Wednesday evening. @FLSERT is addressing more than 600 resource requests from communities in the storm’s path. We are deploying truckloads of food and… pic.twitter.com/M6V76oibn8

— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) October 7, 2024

Watch:

The Florida National Guard, Florida State Guard, FDOT, and FHP are all hands on deck to supplement local debris removal in preparation for Hurricane Milton.

Additionally, the Division of Emergency Management is coordinating with local emergency management directors to inform… pic.twitter.com/Ilt5t2lost

— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) October 6, 2024

#BREAKING: Last night, DeSantis’ administration forcibly ripped open the gates to a Pinellas County landfill site because it was closed ahead of Hurricane Milton

DeSantis had ordered 24/7 availability for debris removal pic.twitter.com/KnrFL4L2Ja

— Florida’s Voice (@FLVoiceNews) October 7, 2024

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