Hurricane Milton Live Updates: Evacuation Time ‘Quickly Coming To An End’ As Category 4 Storm Nears Florida

Topline

Hurricane Milton is back down to a Category 4 storm—after fluctuating between Categories 4 and 5—and is moving across the Gulf of Mexico toward Florida, where millions have been told to evacuate as forecasters warn it could be be “one of the most destructive hurricanes on record” for the west-central part of the state.

People board up a convenience store ahead of Hurricane Milton on Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024, in … [+] Brandon, Fla.

Key Facts

11:12 a.m. EDT, Oct. 9 — Waffle House announced dozens of its locations in Tampa, Fort Meyers, Orlando and beyond would be closed starting Wednesday afternoon, marking Milton as a “red” on the federally recognized “Waffle House Index” (see below).

11 a.m. EDT, Oct. 9 — Milton had maximum sustained winds of 145 mph in the National Hurricane Center’s latest update, classifying it as a Category 4 hurricane.

The storm is about 190 miles southwest of Tampa, is moving northeast at about 17 mph and is expected to be an “extremely dangerous” Category 3 or 4 hurricane when makes landfall on the west-central coast of Florida Wednesday night.

The National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration warned it is impossible to predict exactly where Milton will make landfall, and said the “time to prepare, including evacuate if told to do so, is quickly coming to an end.”

10 a.m. EDT, Oct. 9 — The NHC told residents “now is the time to rush to complete all preparations to protect life and property.”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said in a press conference “you still have time to evacuate if you are in an evacuation zone,” adding roads and highways are still open, but as conditions worsen, “the best option would probably be just to evacuate within your own county,” as emergency shelters have plenty of space.

8 a.m. EDT, Oct. 9 — A hurricane warning is in effect for the West Coast of Florida from Bonita Beach at the southern tip of the state to the Suwannee River near the panhandle, including Tampa Bay, and for the East Coast from the St. Lucie/Martin County Line northward to Ponte Vedra Beach near Jacksonville.

A storm surge warning has been issued for most of the Florida West Coast and extended to Sebastian Inlet, just southwest of Orlando, and a storm surge watch is in effect from north of Altamaha Sound, Georgia to Edisto Beach, South Carolina.

A tropical storm warning is in effect for much of Florida’s west coast, the Florida Keys, its east coast from south of the St. Lucie/Martin County Line to Flamingo, Florida and north of Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida to the Savannah River.

Hurricane watches are in effect for the Florida Gulf Coast for Lake Okeechobee, about 40 miles inland from West Palm Beach, and from Chokoloskee, about 90 miles south of Fort Meyers, to south of Bonita Beach, as well as for the Florida east coast from the St. Lucie/Martin county line to the Palm Beach/Martin county line.

8 a.m. EDT, Oct. 8 — Hurricane Milton is expected to bring 5 to 12 inches of rain, with localized totals up to 18 inches, across parts of the Florida Peninsula and the Keys through Wednesday night, which could cause “life-threatening flash, urban and areal flooding,” according to the NHC.

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What Time Will Hurricane Milton Make Landfall?

The National Hurricane Center said in its latest update that Milton will likely make landfall as a major hurricane along the west-central coast of Florida either late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning, and it will move off the east coast of Florida on Thursday afternoon.

Crucial Quote

“I’ve said many times that (if) you want to pick a fight with Mother Nature, she’s winning 100 percent of the time,” Tampa Mayor Jane Castor said. “And individuals that are in these, say you’re in a single-story home. Twelve feet is above that house. So, if you’re in it, you know, basically that’s the coffin you’re in.”

What Is Storm Surge And Where Could It Be The Worst?

Storm surge is the abnormal rise of seawater level caused by a storm. The NHC warned the combination of storm surge and the tide will cause areas that are normally dry near the coast to be flooded. From Anna Maria Island, Florida to Boca Grande, Florida, the storm surge could be 10 to 15 feet above the ground. From Anclote River, Florida to Anna Maria Island, Florida, in Tampa Bay, Charlotte Harbor, and from Boca Grande to Bonita Beach, Florida, the storm surge could reach eight to 12 feet.

What Have Politicians Said About Hurricane Milton?

President Joe Biden addressed the country from the White House Tuesday morning and called Hurricane Milton “a matter of life and death.” He encouraged Florida residents in the path of the storm to evacuate “now” and postponed a planned international trip to Germany and Angola “in order to oversee preparations for and the response to Hurricane Milton.” Vice President Kamala Harris and DeSantis have been in a strange he-said-she-said about the incoming storm, with Harris accusing DeSantis of not taking her calls and “playing political games” DeSantis said Harris “has no role in this” and that he’s been communicating just fine with Biden, who also said he has been in touch. Biden said he gave DeSantis his personal phone number and told him to call if there is anything the federal government can do to help. Tampa Mayor Jane Castor said in an interview with CNN, “I can say without any dramatization whatsoever: If you choose to stay in one of those evacuation areas, you’re going to die.”

How Is Travel To Florida Impacted By Hurricane Milton?

Tampa International Airport closed at 9 a.m. Tuesday with plans to reopen “as soon as it is safe” later this week and Orlando International Airport will close at 8 a.m. Wednesday. More than 1,700 flights into and out of the United States were canceled as of 8:50 a.m. on Wednesday, and another 350 were delayed. Orlando saw by far the most cancellations, with 398 flights originating there being canceled and 423 flights arriving there being canceled, followed by Tampa with about 190 canceled each way, according to Flight Aware. Major airlines have told passengers they can change their plans without paying a fare difference. Walt Disney World Resort is closing its parks beginning Wednesday morning—news that came after Goldman Sachs predicted the company is likely to take a nine-figure hit financially from the storm. Universal Resort Orlando announced Tuesday afternoon it will close at 2 p.m. EDT Wednesday and remain closed Thursday. Legoland Florida Resort and SeaWorld Orlando will both be closed on Wednesday and Thursday, and Busch Gardens Tampa is now closed through Thursday.

Have Waffle Houses Closed For Hurricane Milton?

Yes. Tampa-area locations of Waffle House, the breakfast food chain, will close ahead of Milton’s projected landfall. The company cited the so-called “Waffle House Index” in a social media post explaining the decision, a reference to a scale invented by former Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) administrator Craig Fugate to judge the severity of a natural disaster. If Waffle Houses in an area are open and serving a full menu, it’s a green on the index, a limited menu is a yellow on the scale, meaning the local area could be without electricity or water, and the index goes to red if the locations close down, indicating the local community will be in need of significant help.

Could Hurricane Milton Be A Category 6 Hurricane?

No. There is currently no such thing as a Category 6 hurricane. The National Hurricane Center measures storm intensity using the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, which ranks storms up to a Category 5, but some scientists think it may be time for a change. Earlier this year, researchers proposed adding a sixth hurricane category to describe storms with wind speeds above 192 mph and adjusting the current Category 5 description to include storms with winds between 157 and 192 mph. Using that proposed scale, five storms between 1980 and 2021 would have been classified as a Category 6, none of which threatened to make landfall in the United States. The National Hurricane Center in February said it has no plans to add a Category 6 to its hurricane scale.

Key Background

Milton will be the second major hurricane to hit Florida in two weeks. Hurricane Helene hit the state on Sept. 26, killing at least 20 in Florida, before going on to devastate parts of the southeastern United States. More than 220 people have died and hundreds more are still missing, with western North Carolina taking the brunt of flooding that the state’s governor says wiped communities “off the map.” In Florida, people are still working to clear debris from Helene as the next storm bears down. Ahead of Hurricane Milton, Hillsborough County, home to Tampa, ordered evacuations for areas near Tampa Bay and for all mobile and manufactured homes by Tuesday night. Lee County, home to Fort Meyers, issued a mandatory evacuation order for the island of Fort Myers Beach. Other mandatory evacuation orders have been issued in Pinellas County, Pasco County and Manatee County. DeSantis on Tuesday said he wasn’t sure exactly how many people plan to evacuate for Hurricane Milton, but that he thinks those who saw Hurricane Helene will be particularly motivated to leave the area.

Tangent

Federal Emergency Management Agency has said it is grappling with “extremely damaging” false narratives circulating about Hurricane Helene, which hit the U.S. two weeks ago. FEMA chief Deanne Criswell said misinformation about the storm and the federal government’s response is the “worst” she’s ever seen as former President Donald Trump and his allies slam the agency. Trump incorrectly claimed FEMA couldn’t respond appropriately to the storm because it diverted so much money to helping migrants on the order of Vice President Kamala Harris. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said the agency is “meeting the immediate needs with the money that we have.” Other rumors include that FEMA has been withholding aid from areas that have historically voted Republican and that the agency is only giving $750 to disaster survivors to support their recovery.