'Extremely dangerous' Hurricane Milton surging toward Tampa: Live updates
Updated 11:15 a.m. ET Oct. 9, 2024
TAMPA, Fla. − Highways grew clogged, gas stations were running out of fuel and stores were stripped of necessities as Hurricane Milton roared toward Florida's beleaguered west coast on Wednesday, a "catastrophic" behemoth on a collision course with one of the state's most densely populated areas.
Millions of storm-weary Floridians have been ordered or urged to flee, and time was running out. The center of Milton, now a Category 4 storm driving sustained winds of 145 mph, was forecast to move across the Gulf of Mexico and make landfall late Wednesday or early Thursday, the National Hurricane Center said in its 11 a.m. update.
“Historic, catastrophic, life-threatening – all those words summarize the situation,” said Austen Flannery, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Tampa.
The storm was on a track to cut across the Florida Peninsula and head into the Atlantic Ocean later Thursday. Milton, expected to retain hurricane status as it moves across the state, is targeting Florida less than two weeks after Hurricane Helene blasted ashore on Florida's Big Bend coast, a Category 4 storm that has left much of Florida battered and vulnerable before devastating the Carolinas.
Tampa, with a metropolitan area that is home to over 3 million people, has not had a direct hit by a major hurricane in more than 100 years. Storm surge from Milton could drive water levels up to 12 feet above ground, the hurricane center said.
Gov. Ron DeSantis, speaking at a briefing Wednesday, said the state was prepared. Hundreds of search and rescue personnel and 180 high-water vehicles have been embedded in likely storm impact sites, he said. Over 6,000 state National Guard members and 3,000 more from other states are at the ready, along with 50,000 linemen who will work on restoring power after the storm.
"We are facing this with the determination that it deserves but also the belief that we will get through this," DeSantis said.
Early Wednesday, Milton was 190 miles soutwest of Tampa, heading northeast at 17 mph, the hurricane center reported.
∎ Rainfall amounts of 6 to 12 inches, with localized totals up to 18 inches, are expected across central to northern portions of the Florida Peninsula through Thursday.
The National Guard was deploying aerial, water, and ground search and rescue teams, the largest Guard search and rescue mobilization in Florida history, Gov. Ron DeSantis said.
∎ About 2.8% of U.S. gross domestic product is in the direct path of Milton, said Ryan Sweet, chief U.S. economist at Oxford Economics. Airlines, energy firms and a Universal Studios theme park were among the companies beginning to halt their Florida operations as they braced for disruptions.
Florida's east coast also will face Milton's wrath
Milton is zeroing in on Florida's west coast, but across the panhandle the east coast won't emerge unscathed. The National Weather Service in Melbourne said the storm is likely to have Category 1 hurricane strength when it rolls over the area. The service warned Wednesday that Milton is “likely to result in a rare and historic event for parts of the area” and the region’s residents could face “devastating impacts from hurricane winds and gusts,” with major flooding also possible.
Storm shelters throughout Brevard County, home to Melbourne, opened Wednesday morning ahead of Milton’s arrival on the Space Coast.