As Hurricane Milton heads toward Florida, expected to make landfall sometime Wednesday evening, locals across the state are scrambling to make emergency preparations and hundreds of thousands are trying to leave areas expected to be the hardest hit.
But with a million people in coastal areas under evacuation orders, highways leading to higher ground clogged and gas stations running out of fuel, many Floridians are choosing to stay put — hoping they can ride out the storm.
It’s a big gamble. On Tuesday, Tampa Bay Mayor Jane Castor issued a blunt warning to those in her city: “If you choose to stay in one of the evacuation zones, you will die,” she told CNN, later noting that up to 4.5 storm surge is expected. meters in her city deep enough to swallow an entire house.
“If you’re in it, this is the coffin you’re in,” she said.
The Tampa Bay area, home to more than 3.3 million people, faces the potential for widespread devastation after avoiding direct hits from major hurricanes for more than a century. The National Hurricane Center expects Milton, a monster Category 5 hurricane, to weaken during most of its approach, but remain a major hurricane when it makes landfall.
By midday Wednesday, it was alerting Floridians that “it is time to shelter in place.”
Authorities issued mandatory evacuation orders across 11 Florida counties, warning that anyone who chooses to stay should fend for themselves, because first responders will not risk their lives to attempt a rescue at the height of the storm.
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As the hurricane approached, Floridians directly in its path posted a video on TikTok, explaining their reasons for staying.
One woman said she expected the hurricane to hit the area where she lives, but says she is not in a mandatory evacuation zone and does not live in a mobile home. She also said she was concerned about taking her six-month-old child to an evacuation center, saying in a video posted Tuesday: “I would be more comfortable in my own home.”
She also explained that “not everyone can get out,” saying they visited 10 gas stations, only to find that they had all run out of fuel, and that traffic leading to higher ground had congested many roads.
Another woman, who owns a hobby farm “in the direct route” of Milton, but inland, between Tampa and Orlando, became emotional in an update Tuesday, saying she was unwilling to part with her many farm animals.
She said there was no place to evacuate her animals, because not all of them had the health certificates needed to be transported out of state. She said she would bring as many animals into the house as she could, but the safest area for her animals to graze would be outside; She explained that leaving them in the barn was dangerous, as the structure could collapse.
However, she expressed concern that flying debris and fallen trees could affect some of the larger livestock.
Meanwhile, Sarasota Realtor Leland Howard said he will stay put because he lives in a home he considers safe enough to weather the storm.
However, he encouraged those who cannot evacuate because of their “physical health or finances” to seek shelter in local temporary centers set up around the state, usually in schools or other large community buildings.
He said resources such as fuel, food, space on the highway and hotel rooms in the northern part of Florida should be made available to people subject to mandatory evacuation.
There are others, like Florida-based influencer Carolyn Calloway, who live in mandatory evacuation zones and are still choosing to stay.
“Listen, I didn’t evacuate. I can’t drive, number one. Number two, the airport is closed,” she said on her Instagram Story on Tuesday, also explaining that the last time she was evacuated she went to her mother’s house, where they were still without power. Or food or running water and “it was the worst time ever.”
“I’m going to die,” she said, noting that her Sarasota home is considered “Zone A, mandatory evacuation.”
She later posted a photo overlooking the water, with the caption: “I’m a little nervous because I live on the beach not gonna lie.”
Screenshot from Caroline Calloway’s Instagram story.
Another Florida man, who said he lives about 14 kilometers from the water, shared a video of his hurricane preparations, which included elaborately wrapping his brand-new Corvette sports car in a roll of plastic wrap.
A state of emergency is in effect in 51 Florida counties, and 149 shelters have been set up across the state to accommodate nearly 200,000 people, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said on Wednesday.
“You still have time to evacuate if you are in an evacuation zone.”
DeSantis said staying would be “dangerous,” especially for those in evacuation zones, including barrier islands, Sarasota County and other parts of coastal Charlotte County.
Over time, he said the best option is to evacuate within your county to a shelter.
— With files from The Associated Press
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