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| St. Petersburg, Florida. Days after Hurricane Milton. |
If you listen to Fox, Sean "Softball" Hannity, Tucker Carlson, former president Donald J. Trump and Breitbart, you may end up losing your life to a natural disaster.
The west coast of Florida is likely in ruins.
Siesta Kay, a suburb of Sarasota was the impact zone of Milton. The area of major damage spreads from Tampa-St. Petersburg to Fort Meyers.
The hurricane was a category 3 and downgraded to a category 1 when it went through Central Florida and out through Cocoa Beach.
Hurricane Milton is a weakening tropical cyclone that made landfall in the U.S. state of Florida, less than two weeks after Hurricane Helene devastated the state's Big Bend region. The thirteenth named storm, ninth hurricane, fourth major hurricane, and second Category 5 hurricane of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, Milton formed from a long-tracked tropical disturbance which originated in the western Caribbean Sea and consolidated in the Bay of Campeche on October 5. The storm then underwent explosive intensification, and became a Category 5 hurricane on October 7 while still over the Gulf of Mexico. At peak intensity, the hurricane was the fifth-most intense in the Atlantic on record, and is the most powerful tropical cyclone worldwide in 2024. Milton weakened to Category 4 after an eyewall replacement cycle, then regained strength and became a Category 5 hurricane again. Increasing wind shear then caused the hurricane to weaken as it turned northeastwards towards Florida, eventually falling to Category 3 intensity before making landfall near Siesta Key during the evening on October 9.
An estimated six million Floridians were ordered to evacuate, marking one of the largest evacuation orders in state history since Hurricane Irma in 2017. The evacuation orders were primarily situated in Hillsborough and surrounding counties. Volusia and Marion counties also issued evacuation orders for homes at risk. United Airlines issued a travel advisory for five airports in the state. Throughout the Tampa Bay area, comfort stations and locations to do basic utilities that were opened due to Helene were closed due to Milton. In Longboat Key, officials stated that residents should evacuate from the town. In coordination with the Florida Division of Emergency Management, Uber offered free rides to and from state shelters.
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| Biden shows calm while DeSantis shows his ass. |
The National Hockey League cancelled the preseason finale for the Tampa Bay Lightning, which was initially postponed from Helene. All University of Central Florida sporting events scheduled for October 9 and 10 were cancelled as well. The South Florida Bulls football game against the Memphis Tigers was postponed from October 11 to October 12.
The National Football League's Tampa Bay Buccaneers relocated to New Orleans ahead of their game against the New Orleans Saints on October 13.
Publix and Walmart altered store hours and closed several other of their locations in preparation for the storm and their locations among other stores faced shortages of items such as bottled water, alcohol, canned goods, and snacks due to panic buying. Gas station shortages occurred across the state, with 16.5% out by the afternoon of October 8, including 43% in the Tampa Bay area according to GasBuddy. Governor DeSantis said fuel replenishment efforts were underway and said that there was not a fuel shortage. The Florida Highway Patrol began escorting fuel tankers to help replenish gas stations ahead of landfall to aid in evacuation efforts. DeSantis also urged that people consider evacuating "tens of miles" instead of "hundreds of miles". The American Automobile Association advised Floridians to "take only what you need" and to avoid letting one's gas tank getting too low before looking for a place to fill up. Thirty-three Waffle House locations in Milton's projected path were closed, indicating a red level on the Waffle House Index.
President Joe Biden postponed a planned trip from October 10 to 15 to Angola and Germany in order to oversee preparations and the response and urged those living in areas at risk to evacuate, saying that it was a matter of life and death.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) suffered a staffing shortage ahead of the storm, with only 9% of the agency's staff available. According to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, the agency remained ready to respond, saying that "we can respond to multiple events at a single time". Over the previous five years at least 25% of staff remained available by October 7. This figure was lower than in 2017 when FEMA's staff availability dropped to 19% as FEMA staff responded to Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma, and Hurricane Maria. Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre ended a briefing, accusing journalists of spreading misinformation related to disaster funding.
There were casualties involved as a result of evacuating: one fatality occurred after a car accident in Marion County southeast of Orange Lake, while three people were injured after the plane they were in crashed into Tampa Bay after its engine failed while taking off from Albert Whitted Airport in St. Petersburg. In addition, two people died on eastbound Highway 82 while evacuating.
On an October 8 observation flight NOAA scientists spread the ashes of hurricane scientist Peter Dodge into the eye of the storm.
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