The Hurricane Helene killed at least
230 people and did billions of dollars of
damage.
Photo via Voice of America Journal.
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International
news
Published on Monday, October 7, 2024 By
the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services
The U.S. State of
Florida is preparing for its largest
evacuation since 2017 as Hurricane
Milton, now a powerful Category 5 storm
in the Gulf of Mexico, heads for the
southeastern U.S. state. The storm’s
pending arrival follows the recent
devastation left behind by Hurricane
Helene.
According to a report
published by Voice of America Journal, on Monday,
Milton was about 1,130 kilometers (702
miles) southwest of Tampa, with winds of
280 kilometers per hour (174 mph). The
storm was moving at 15 kilometers per
hour (9 mph).
“I just approved
an emergency declaration from the State
of Florida and ordered federal
assistance to supplement response
efforts that may arise due to emergency
conditions resulting from Hurricane
Milton,” U.S. President Joe Biden said
in a statement on X, formerly Twitter.
“We expect this storm to again make
landfall in western Florida and are
working quickly to preposition federal
response personnel and assets.”
The Miami-based
hurricane center said Milton, which
strengthened from a tropical storm on
Sunday, was projected to make landfall
on Wednesday morning, most likely near
the heavily populated Tampa Bay area,
with a dangerous storm surge. The center
urged residents to heed the advice of
local officials.
“This is the real
deal here with Milton,” Tampa Mayor Jane
Castor warned Monday. “If you want to
take on Mother Nature, she wins 100% of
the time.”
Milton has the
potential to affect areas already hit
hard by Helene, which made landfall
further north on the coast on Sept. 26.
Several Florida counties have already received mandatory evacuation orders and more orders are expected.
Kevin Guthrie, the
director of the Florida Division of
Emergency Management, warned Monday that
evacuation shelters are likely to become
full quickly, but additional shelters
are being identified.
“If they’ve called
your evacuation zone, I beg you, I
implore you, to evacuate,” he said
Monday. “I would highly recommend
anybody who’s got the means to do so...
get on the road today, wherever that may
be.”
Florida Governor
Ron DeSantis has declared 51 of the
state's 67 counties under a state of
emergency, predicting Milton could have
"major, major impacts," with storm
surges of up to 6 meters (20 feet).
"If you are
somebody that is in a very vulnerable
part of the west coast of Florida that
would be susceptible to storm surge, you
certainly can leave now. You don't have
to wait to get an evacuation order,"
DeSantis told reporters Sunday evening.
About 7 million
people were urged in 2017 to evacuate
Florida during Hurricane Irma.
The exodus jammed
freeways and led to hours-long lines at
gas stations.
It also left
evacuees frustrated and, in some cases,
vowing never to evacuate again.
Building on
lessons learned from previous storms,
Florida is staging emergency fuel and
charging stations for electric vehicles
along evacuation routes.
Voice of America
Journal, VOA, is a U.S. government
news agency funded by the U.S.
Congress.
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