The mayor of Miami-Dade, Daniella Levine Cava, suggested early on the evacuation of people living in mobile homes and as the hours progressed, she announced a state of emergency before the arrival of the Hurricane Milton, which continues to strengthen “explosively” with maximum sustained winds of 180 miles per hour.
“We are working closely with the commission, cities and schools to make sure we are prepared for any impacts,” Levine Cava said.
The mayor emphasized that significant weather threats, including tropical storm-force winds, heavy rainfall and localized flooding, could begin as soon as Tuesday night.
Milton, a hurricane that has strengthened in record time, is now a category 5, the largest on the Saffir-Simpson scale, and its center is expected to make landfall probably on Wednesday near Tampa Bay, in Hillsborough County. .
The hurricane is moving at a speed of 10 miles per hour and will cross almost all of Florida from west to east starting next Wednesday, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC) of the United States.
Given the emergency, several evacuation centers will be opened in Miami Dade for people who reside in mobile homes and who decide to evacuate voluntarily.
For his part, the governor of Florida, Republican Ron DeSantis, said this afternoon that, since it cannot be anticipated how strong and the exact point where the hurricane will impact, it is necessary for the majority of Floridians to take precautions.
“Today you have time to execute the emergency plan. You have time to make sure you, your family and your pets are safe. So please do it. “This is not a storm where you want to take risks… we have to be prepared,” he insisted.
Hurricane Milton is “potentially catastrophic,” the NHC warned, although it is expected to experience fluctuations, “it will remain an extremely dangerous hurricane until it makes landfall in Florida.”
The cyclone intensified “explosively” in the last 24 hourssince on Sunday afternoon it had just reached category 1.
As of Monday, counties in the possible impact zone – such as Charlotte, Citrus, Hillsborough, Lee, Manatee and Pasco – have begun issuing mandatory evacuation orders.
Although Milton is expected to weaken on Tuesday as it moves over the Gulf of Mexico, dropping to a Category 3 hurricane by the time it makes landfall in Tampa Bay, Florida, experts warn that the phenomenon could regain strength unexpectedly.
Keep reading:
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- Evacuation orders issued in Florida as Hurricane Milton advances