Florida orders evacuations as Milton hones in on state

HURRICANE

Cars wait in line to get into the parking lot for gas at a Costco on Monday in Altamonte Springs, Fla., as residents prepare for the impact of the approaching Hurricane Milton. JOE BURBANK — ORLANDO SENTINEL VIA THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

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By Haven Daley and Mike Schneider

The Associated Press

BELLEAIR BEACH, Fla. >> Florida’s storm-battered Gulf Coast raced against a Category 5 hurricane Monday as workers sprinted to pick up heaps of appliances and other street debris left over from Helene two weeks ago and highways were clogged with people fleeing ahead of the storm.

The center of Hurricane Milton could come ashore Wednesday in the Tampa Bay region, which has not endured a direct hit by a major hurricane in more than a century. Scientists expect the system to weaken slightly before landfall, though it could retain hurricane strength as it churns across central Florida toward the Atlantic Ocean. That would largely spare other states ravaged by Helene, which killed at least 230 people on its path from Florida to the Carolinas.

“This is the real deal here with Milton,” Tampa Mayor Jane Castor told a news conference. “If you want to take on Mother Nature, she wins 100% of the time.”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Monday that it was imperative for debris from Helene to be cleared ahead of Milton’s arrival so the pieces cannot become projectiles.

As evacuation orders were issued, forecasters warned of a possible 8- to 12-foot storm surge in Tampa Bay. That’s the highest ever predicted for the region and nearly double the levels reached two weeks ago during Helene, said National Hurricane Center spokeswoman Maria Torres.

The storm could also bring widespread flooding. Five to 10 inches of rain was forecast for mainland Florida and the Keys, with as much as 15 inches expected in some places.

The Tampa metro area has a population of more than 3.3 million people.

“It’s a huge population. It’s very exposed, very inexperienced, and that’s a losing proposition,” Massachusetts Institute of Technology meteorology professor Kerry Emanuel said. “I always thought Tampa would be the city to worry about most.”

Much of Florida’s west coast was under hurricane and storm surge warnings. A hurricane warning was also issued for parts of Mexico’s Yucatan state, which expected to get sideswiped.

Milton intensified quickly Monday over the eastern Gulf of Mexico. It had maximum sustained winds of 180 mph, the National Hurricane Center said. The storm’s center was about 675 miles (1085 kilometers) southwest of Tampa by late afternoon, moving east-southeast at 10 mph.

The Tampa Bay area is still rebounding from Helene and its powerful surge. Twelve people died there, with the worst damage along a string of barrier islands from St. Petersburg to Clearwater.