Residents of Tampa, Florida, are being warned that ignoring evacuation orders as Hurricane Milton approaches could result in dire consequences.
During an interview on Monday, Mayor Jane Castor said “I can say without any dramatization whatsoever: If you choose to stay in one of those evacuation areas, you’re going to die,” Axios reported on Tuesday.
Castor also noted that from the looks of the highways, people were heading north to safety:
The storm became a Category 5 hurricane on Monday not long after Hurricane Helene hit Florida and several other states.
Meteorologist Rick Davis who works with the National Weather Service in Tampa, shared insight with the New York Times on how this hurricane could affect the area:
The region’s coastal landscape was altered by Helene, he said: Barrier islands were badly damaged, sand dunes were destroyed, sand levels were left “very low” and many of the trees and other natural vegetation that are usually present along beaches were uprooted.
“Just after our latest hurricane, we are extremely vulnerable, especially to surge,” he said.
Hurricane Milton threatens to bring a life-threatening storm surge, wind damage, flooding rainfall, and tornadoes as it nears Florida on Wednesday, the Weather Channel reported on Tuesday.
An infographic titled “Milton strengthens into powerful Category 5 hurricane” created on October 8, 2024. (Photo by Yasin Demirci/Anadolu via Getty Images)
“Hurricane warnings cover much of central Florida from the Gulf side to the Atlantic side, including the Tampa Bay area, Fort Myers, Orlando and and Daytona Beach,” the article read, adding the hurricane may gain some strength on Tuesday but gradually weaken as it nears the state.
“It’s important to note that this weakening won’t reduce the impacts we see from Milton, including storm surge and destructive winds. Milton will also grow larger on approach to Florida, allowing its wind, storm surge and rainfall impacts to sprawl out across a bigger area,” the outlet said, then warned people not to let their guard down.
In a social media post on Tuesday, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) urged residents to heed warnings from officials and make a plan to find a safe place.
“We have deployed thousands of guardsmen and dozens of SAR aircraft for search, rescue, and response; over 300 ambulances; more than 11,000 feet of flood protection barriers; and we have an additional 1.2 million gallons of fuel coming to Central Florida,” he wrote:
“More than 37,000 linemen are prepared to restore power as swiftly and safely as possible after the storm passes,” DeSantis added.
