Hurricane Milton category 4
The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) has announced that Hurricane Milton has rapidly strengthened into a category 4 storm that is “extremely dangerous”. As it moves toward the eastern Gulf of Mexico later on Monday, the storm is predicted to intensify to category 5 strength, with landfall in Florida predicted on Wednesday.
In preparation, Florida officials are organizing the state’s largest evacuation effort in years. Governor Ron DeSantis emphasized that time for evacuation is running out quickly. Milton’s approach follows the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene, which recently struck the southeastern US, resulting in at least 225 fatalities, with many others missing. Of the deaths attributed to Helene, 14 occurred in Florida, prompting emergency warnings in 51 of the state’s 67 counties.
Milton was experiencing wind speeds of about 150 mph (240 km/h) as of Monday morning. It’s expected to land close to Tampa Bay, then travel over Florida in a northeastern direction before reaching the Atlantic Ocean. With storm surges of 5–10 feet (1.5–3.5 meters) along the west coast and localized rainfall totals of up to 15 inches (38 cm), the NHC has issued a warning of torrential rain and flash floods across Florida.
Governor DeSantis advised everyone in the impacted areas to leave right now, especially if they were in danger of storm surge. Tolls on routes in western and central Florida were to be stopped, and evacuation orders were scheduled to be issued throughout the day on Monday. DeSantis issued a warning, predicting significant effects, saying Milton might keep hurricane status as it moves through the state.
As Hurricane Milton approaches, relief efforts are still in progress following Hurricane Helene, which closed hundreds of highways and interfered with the delivery of aid to affected areas. President Joe Biden has authorized roughly $140 million in federal aid for the impacted communities and has directed 500 more soldiers to North Carolina to help with recovery work, bringing the total to 1,500.
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