By Hurricane Milton intensified to a Category 5 storm on Tuesday, threatening Florida with potentially catastrophic damage just two weeks after Hurricane Helene devastated the region. The National Hurricane Center reported Milton’s maximum sustained winds at 165 mph (270 kph) as it approaches the state’s west coast.
President Joe Biden urged residents in the storm’s path to evacuate immediately, calling it a “matter of life and death.” Florida Governor Ron DeSantis warned that virtually the entire Florida peninsula is under some form of watch or warning.
Hurricane expert Michael Lowry cautioned that Milton’s storm surge in the Tampa Bay area, home to about three million people, could double the levels seen during Hurricane Helene.
As the storm approaches, Floridians are rushing to secure their homes and evacuate. Airlines have added extra flights out of Tampa, Orlando, Fort Myers, and Sarasota, while highways are congested with evacuating traffic and gas stations report fuel shortages.
The impending disaster has become a political flashpoint ahead of the November 5 presidential election. Former President Donald Trump has criticized the federal response to Hurricane Helene, making unsubstantiated claims about the misuse of disaster funds. President Biden denounced these comments as “un-American,” while Vice President Kamala Harris, in a televised interview, accused Trump of lacking empathy for storm victims.
Scientists attribute the intensity of recent storms to global warming, noting that warmer ocean surfaces provide more energy for hurricanes.
The approaching storm has complicated ongoing relief efforts from Hurricane Helene, which killed at least 230 people across several states when it made landfall on September 26 as a Category 4 hurricane. Helene caused massive flooding in remote inland towns, becoming the deadliest U.S. mainland natural disaster since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
As Milton approaches, emergency workers are racing to remove debris left by Helene that could become dangerous projectiles in the new storm’s high winds.
