Florida braces for Hurricane Milton: ‘If you stay, you are going to die’

“It has dropped 50 millibars in 10 hours.” For most people, that statement may not carry much weight. But when John Morales, the chief meteorologist for an NBC station in Florida, said it, he struggled to hold back tears. “I apologize. This is just horrific,” he said, as he composed himself. “It’s just an incredible, incredible hurricane,” he added, referring to Milton, the hurricane expected to strike Florida’s west coast Wednesday night. Residents, state authorities, and the federal government are bracing for its arrival. According to U.S. President Joe Biden, it could be “one of the worst storms in 100 years” to hit Florida. Local authorities have issued a stark warning for those in evacuation zones: “If you stay, you will die.”

The southeastern United States is still reeling from the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene, which claimed over 220 lives in its path of destruction across six states. While the storm made landfall in Florida a couple of weeks ago, its most severe impacts were felt further inland, particularly in Georgia and the Carolinas.

Hurricane Milton — currently moving through the Gulf of Mexico — is projected to sweep across Florida from coast to coast, as per the forecast from the National Hurricane Center. The central region of Florida is expected to be the hardest hit. In anticipation of the storm’s arrival, authorities closed Tampa International Airport on Tuesday, as it lies in the predicted path of the storm. The hurricane is also expected to impact the Orlando area before moving east toward the Atlantic.

President Biden has canceled his scheduled trip to Germany and Angola in order to oversee preparations and response efforts for Hurricane Milton, as well as ongoing relief operations following the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene, announced White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre.

‘A matter of life or death’

After a meeting with emergency teams, Biden insisted that it could be one of the worst storms to hit the United States “in over a century.” “God willing it won’t be, but that’s what it’s looking like right now,” he added, emphasizing that adhering to evacuation orders in the most vulnerable areas is “a matter of life or death.” “I’ve encouraged everyone currently located in Hurricane Milton’s path to listen to local officials and follow the safety instructions,” he added.

Evacuation orders have been issued in nine Florida counties. Tampa Mayor Jane Castor delivered a stark warning: “I can say without any dramatization whatsoever: If you choose to stay in one of those evacuation areas, you’re going to die,” she told CNN. Emergency responders have emphasized that even residents in high-rise buildings are not safe from the storm’s impact.

The Tampa Bay region — which is particularly susceptible to storm surge — has not experienced a direct hit from a major hurricane in over a century. In 2022, the area narrowly avoided disaster when Hurricane Ian shifted south, resulting in approximately 150 fatalities across Florida. Now, the densely populated region finds itself back in the hurricane’s projected path.

As it traversed the Gulf of Mexico, north of the Yucatán, Hurricane Milton reached Category 5 — the highest rating on the Saffir-Simpson scale, which categorizes hurricanes based on the speed of their sustained winds. Although it has since weakened to a Category 4 hurricane, it is approaching Florida with sustained winds of 145 miles per hour and even higher gusts. While wind speed is a critical factor in determining a hurricane’s destructive potential, its size, the intensity of its rainfall, and its forward speed are also crucial, particularly regarding the risk of flooding.

“Milton is expected to grow in size and remain an extremely dangerous hurricane when it approaches the west coast of Florida on Wednesday. A large area of destructive storm surge will occur along parts of the west coast of Florida on Wednesday. This is an extremely life-threatening situation,” the National Hurricane Center wrote in its 5 p.m. ET forecast on Tuesday, which also warned that devastating hurricane-force winds are expected along portions of Florida’s west coast.

While many hurricanes typically weaken to storms upon making landfall, the National Hurricane Center predicted on Tuesday that Milton would remain a hurricane status as it moved across the Florida peninsula. Authorities warned that preparations to protect life and property in the warning areas had to be completed by Tuesday night.

“Let’s prepare for the worst, and let’s pray that we get a weakening,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Tuesday. “But we must be prepared for a major, major impact to the west coast of Florida.”

Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAÍS USA Edition