Heavy rain and wind began to blow in the Tampa Bay area Wednesday morning as Hurricane Milton made a potentially catastrophic landfall on Florida’s west coast, where some residents insisted they would stay even after millions were ordered to evacuate.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Wednesday that tolls would be levied on the state’s highways to allow people to go to the outlying areas or the dozens of shelters available in affected areas. He warned that the condition of the road may worsen during the day, and that some gas stations have run out of fuel even though there is no general supply of fuel in the province.
Milton has fluctuated between categories 4 and 5 as it approaches, but regardless of the difference in wind speeds, the National Hurricane Center said it will be a large and dangerous storm when its center makes landfall on Wednesday or early Thursday. Officials say they expect major power outages, as well as damage to trees and foliage.
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More than 50,000 power line workers from as far away as California are now in the region and preparing to help restore power, DeSantis said.
“If you’re in the path of this storm, you’re probably going to lose power,” DeSantis said at a press conference Wednesday afternoon in Lake City. “All these people will struggle to get power back as soon as possible.”
The Tampa Bay region, home to more than 3.3 million people, has not seen a major hurricane strike in more than a century.
“Please, if you’re in the Tampa Bay area, you need to get out,” said Kevin Guthrie, executive director of Florida’s emergency services. “Your home and things can be changed, but you can’t.”
Milton was located 255 miles northwest of Fort Myers and 280 miles southwest of Tampa at 12 p.m. ET Wednesday, with maximum sustained winds of 140 mph, just shy of Category 5, it said. hurricane center. It was moving northeast at 28 km/h.
In Pinellas County in Florida, officials say the window is closing quickly for people in low-risk areas to get out.
“This is it, folks,” emergency management director Cathie Perkins said at a Wednesday morning press conference. “Those of you who have been hit by typhoon Helene will be the bottom line. You must get out and get out now.”
Milton scored 1-2 behind Helene in other places
Perkins said 13 public shelters are open for people who have no other way to escape the storm, and that major bridges around Tampa Bay will begin closing in the afternoon. Perkins also said that people should not feel uneasy because of indications that Milton may make it to the south coast of Tampa.
“Everybody in Tampa Bay should think we’re going to be out of business,” he said.
NASA released new video recorded from the International Space Station on Wednesday showing Hurricane Milton as it circled toward Florida on Wednesday. Astronomer Matthew Dominick posted this video on social media, saying that the storm looks bigger but less intense than the day before.
The storm led to a series of cancellations and closures, including at Disneyworld in Orlando.
All the residents of these low-lying communities in the west of the city of St. and they drowned in their homes.
In Sarasota, emergency officials urgently warned people living near bodies of water to leave immediately.
“This storm will start at 10 or 15 feet near the coast and then move away,” Sarasota County Emergency Management Director Sandra Tapfumaneyi said at a Wednesday morning news conference. “And a strong storm likes to go in a way that it can’t resist. So those of you who live near the river, who live near the stream – those riverbanks, their water, will rise.”
Air Canada told CBC News that about 20 flights back to the affected areas in Florida have already been canceled so far. Travelers are advised to check the status of their flights before going to the airport.
Air Canada said it made 900 additional seats available in Orlando and Tampa before the storm, and is formalizing plans to add more than 1,100 seats after the storm.
“This is a dynamic situation and our plans may change depending on how the storm moves, airport availability and more,” the airline said in a statement.
Still in the wake of Hurricane Helene, millions of Floridians are now preparing for the worst as Hurricane Milton hits the state. Andrew Chang explains why Milton will be one of Florida’s worst hurricanes of the century.
Senior officials are warning of historic damage
“It looks like the storm of the century,” President Joe Biden said at a press conference on Wednesday.
Although it may be difficult to get out, he urged residents to listen to local officials, calling it “a matter of life and death.”
The briefing, held at the White House complex, was intended to highlight security concerns and show that the administration was prepared for Milton.
“Most of you that I know are resilient, and you’ve weathered these storms before,” said Vice President Kamala Harris. “This one will be different.”
Mayor Ken Welch of St. Petersburg, Fla., says that while his city has invested to adapt to climate change, the effects of a warmer world are showing up faster than expected, meaning the construction of high seawalls and strong infrastructure.
‘Ghost town’
A tornado watch has been issued for more than 20 Florida counties ahead of Hurricane Milton. The National Weather Service on Wednesday morning issued a watch, covering much of Florida, including the Tampa area, the Florida Keys and Miami-Dade County.
In Charlotte Harbor, about two blocks from the water, Josh Parks spent Wednesday morning packing his Kia sedan and his clothes and other belongings into his small triplex apartment.
LISTEN l It’s a long, difficult journey out of Florida, resident tells CBC:
In the meantime19:09Floridians flee second monster storm in weeks
Hurricane Milton is hitting Florida, just weeks after Hurricane Helene was devastating. Jaina Thatch is already out. He says that facing two storms back to back is unimaginable, he hopes that he will have a home to return to.
The clouds were changing and the wind had started to blow. Two weeks ago, Helene’s operation brought about 1.5 meters of water to the area. Streets are still littered with waterlogged furniture, torn drywall and other debris.
“It’s a haunted place here,” said Parks, the auto technician.
His roommate had run away and Park was not sure when he would return.
“I told her to pack like you’re not coming back,” said Parks, who was fleeing to her daughter’s home in Florida.
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