MONSTER Hurricane Milton is barreling toward Florida with 160 mph winds bringing “life and death” 15-foot waves.
Tampa’s mayor warned that those who stayed in the city would die as 5.5 million people were told to evacuate their homes just hours before the mainland.
18
Highways are gridlocked as millions of Floridians evacuate their homesCredit: EPA
18
Streets in Mexico’s Yucatan state have already been flooded by Hurricane MiltonCredit: AP
18
Residents in the path of the storm prepare their homes by boarding up the windows Credit: AP
18
Residents fill sandbags in Tampa ahead of expected Hurricane Milton landfall Credit: Rex
18
Milton’s Expected Path
18
Satellite images show Milton passing over the Gulf of MexicoCredit: Reuters
Milton is currently 405 miles southwest of Tampa and is expected to cross the Gulf and make landfall south of the city Wednesday evening.
Storm surges of 15 feet are expected – engulfing entire homes with water and anyone who tries to ride it out inside.
The sharks were swimming through the streets of the bay city of Punta Gorda just two weeks ago when Hurricane Helene hit them.
A staggering 5.5 million people were affected by mandatory or voluntary evacuation orders in the central part of the state.
READ MORE IN HURRICANE Milton
Evacuation orders closed schools, shuttered businesses and forced residents to board up their homes and then flee.
Many are also panic buying supplies like bottled water and toilet paper as they prepare for days of chaos.
US President Joe Biden has warned West Coast residents that staying in their homes is “a matter of life and death”.
He said, “This could be the worst storm to hit Florida in over a century, and God willing, it won’t be, but that’s the way it looks right now.”
He added that domestic politicians will get “everything they ask for” to prepare and deal with the weather phenomenon.
Biden canceled an overseas trip before the storm made landfall, NBC News reported.
HURRICANE HELL The moment a meteorologist burst into tears while warning of a hurricane live on TV
The storm was re-upgraded to a Category 5 on Tuesday, hours after it was downgraded to a Category 4 earlier in the day.
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) said the area affected by the winds could double by the time it makes landfall.
They said, “It will be an extremely dangerous hurricane when it makes landfall.”
Milton has sustained winds of 160 mph, and winds can currently be felt 140 miles from the center, the NHC said.
18
Milton can be seen from the International Space StationCredit: Rex
18
Traffic cameras caught the gridlock as people tried to flee coastal areas in FloridaCredit: FDOT
The US government’s Federal Emergency Management Agency says it has 20 million meals and 40 million liters of water ready to be distributed across Florida.
The storm is set to be the worst to hit the Tampa area in more than 100 years if it stays on its current plan, according to the National Weather Service.
Jacksonville, Orlando, Tampa and Fort Myers are the most at-risk areas.
Tampa Mayor Jane Castor warned the city’s nearly 400,000 residents to evacuate immediately.
I can say this without any dramatization: if you decide to stay in one of those evacuation zones, you will die
Jane Castor Mayor of Tampa
She told CNN: “I can say this without any dramatization: If you choose to stay in one of those evacuation zones, you will die.
“This is something I’ve never seen in my life, and anyone born and raised in the Tampa Bay area has never seen this before.”
Officials in the Tampa Bay area say they will shut off water supplies ahead of Hurricane Milton’s arrival.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis described the hurricane as a “monster” and warned that the damage would be “significant.”
18
Florida residents have already started packing their belongingsCredit: Reuters
18
Businesses in Tampa remain open for now, but are largely closed Credit: Getty
Orlando meteorologist Noah Bergren described the storm as “nothing short of astronomical.”
The Bahamas government has also issued a tropical storm warning for the northwest areas of the island.
Thousands of terrified residents tried to flee toward Miami as highways remained at a standstill.
Northbound Interstate 75 was stacked bumper-to-bumper while traveling at just 7 miles per hour Monday afternoon.
18
Biden was forced to postpone the presidential trip due to the threat of a hurricaneCredit: Getty
18
Satellite images of Hurricane MiltonCredit: AP
18
Residents are still reeling from the problems caused by Hurricane Helene just 12 days ago, with debris still piling up in the streetsCredit: AP
18
A tattered American flag stands in front of the debris of Hurricane Helena as families await the arrival of Hurricane MiltonCredit: AP
Tampa’s main airport closed at 9 a.m. Tuesday, and officials said it will remain empty until weather conditions improve.
International airport of St. Pete-Clearwater turns into a mandatory evacuation zone after the last flight takes off today.
Fares also jumped with American Airlines and Delta Air Lines increasing the cost of the last few seats by a hundred dollars.
Universal Studios Orlando will also close its doors, with the iconic theme park starting to lock down from 2pm on Wednesday.
It will then be completely closed on Thursday with plans to reopen a day later.
More than 4,600 inmates are also being transferred because of Milton, the Florida Department of Corrections says.
They said they did so “without compromising public safety” and that further evacuations were expected.
The strongest Atlantic hurricane ever recorded came in the 1980s.
Named Allen, it reached incredible winds of 200 km/h as it moved through the Caribbean and the Gulf before slamming into Texas and Mexico.
What is a hurricane and how does it form?
A HURRICANE is another name for a tropical cyclone – a powerful storm that forms over warm ocean waters near the equator.
Those that form in the Atlantic or eastern Pacific are called hurricanes, while those in the western Pacific and Indian Ocean are called typhoons or cyclones.
North of the equator they spin counterclockwise due to the Earth’s rotation, however, in the southern hemisphere they spin in the opposite direction.
Cyclones are like huge weather engines powered by water vapor evaporating from the sea.
Warm, moist air rises from the surface, creating a low pressure system that sucks in air from surrounding areas – which in turn warms the ocean.
As the vapor rises, it cools and condenses into swirling bands of cumulonimbus storm clouds.
The system grows and spins faster, sucking in more air and feeding on the energy of seawater heated by the sun.
A calm “eye” of the storm forms in the center where cooled air sinks toward the ultra-low pressure zone below, surrounded by spiral winds of rising warm air.
The faster the wind, the lower the air pressure in the center, and the storm gets stronger and stronger.
Tropical cyclones usually weaken when they make landfall because they are no longer fed by evaporation from warm seas.
But they often move far inland – dumping huge amounts of rain and causing devastating wind damage – before the “fuel” runs out and the storm ends.
Hurricanes can also cause storm surges when low air pressure raises sea levels higher than normal, flooding low-lying coasts.
18
Shelves at a grocery store in Kissimmee are empty of bottled waterCredit: AFP
18
Residents install plywood in preparation for Hurricane MiltonCredit: AFP
18
Tropicana Field has set up shelter and beds for residents in need as the storm hits Credit: Reuters
18
A military convoy is seen in Sanford, Florida as millions prepare for the hurricaneCredit: AFP
Categories: Optical Illusion
Source: HIS Education