The mayor of Tampa Bay, a city that’s in the crosshairs of Hurricane Milton, issued a grave warning to Florida residents who don’t heed calls to evacuate ahead of the monster storm.
“If you choose to stay … you are going to die,” Mayor Jane Castor bluntly said on CNN while talking about the dangers of Milton, a “literally catastrophic” Category 5 hurricane that’s barreling toward the Sunshine State’s coast.
The powerful storm could hit Florida as early as Wednesday and may be more destructive than deadly Hurricane Helene, which ripped through parts of the Sunshine State just last week.
Tampa Mayor Jane Castor: “I can say this without any dramatization whatsoever: If you choose to stay in one of those evacuation areas, you are going to die.” pic.twitter.com/CP0VmK3TUC
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) October 8, 2024
Castor emphasized that attempting to ride out the storm would – not could – prove fatal. The time to flee is now, she urged residents in evacuation zones.
Hurricane Milton surged Monday into a monster Category 5 storm with 180 mph winds in the Gulf of Mexico, and is forecast to remain a dangerous major hurricane ahead of landfall on Florida’s Gulf Coast.
As of 11 p.m., the NHC said Milton had weakened slightly, with it maximum-sustained winds at 165 mph, which is still a powerful Category 5 hurricane, the highest level in its wind scale. Sitting amid the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico and low wind shear, it was located 630 miles southwest of Tampa and 35 miles north-northwest of Progresso, Mexico moving east at 9 mph north of the Yucatan peninsula.
“The [winds] decrease is likely the result of an eyewall replacement reported by the Hurricane Hunters,” the hurricane center said. “Notwithstanding, Milton still remains an extremely dangerous Category 5 hurricane”
The intensity forecast projects that Milton will maintain its 160-165 mph winds through the next 24 hours before beginning to lose steam as it turns toward Florida.
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