Fearful residents flee Tampa Bay region as Hurricane Milton takes aim at Florida coast

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Fearful Florida residents streamed out of the Tampa Bay region Tuesday ahead of what could be a once-in-a-century direct hit from Hurricane Milton, as crews worked furiously to prevent furniture, appliances and other waterlogged wreckage from the last big storm from becoming deadly projectiles in this one.

Tuesday marked the last chance for millions of people in the Tampa metro area to prepare for lethal storm surges, ferocious winds and possible tornadoes in a place that has narrowly avoided a head-on blow from a major storm for generations.

“Today’s the last day to get ready,” said Craig Fugate, a former FEMA director who previously ran the state’s emergency operation division. “This is bringing everything.”

Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state deployed over 300 dump trucks that had removed 1,300 loads of debris left behind by Hurricane Helene by Tuesday afternoon. In Clearwater Beach, Nick Szabo spent a second long day hauling away 3-foot (0.9-meter) piles of soggy mattresses, couches and drywall after being hired by a local resident who was eager to help clear the roads and unwilling to wait for overwhelmed city contractors.

“All this crap is going to be missiles,” he said. “It’s like a spear coming at you.”

Residents evacuate as Milton regains strength

After weakening slightly, Milton regained strength Tuesday afternoon and became a Category 5 storm again, with winds of 165 mph (265 kph). It could make landfall Wednesday night in the Tampa Bay area, which has a population of more than 3.3 million people. The 11 Florida counties under mandatory evacuation orders are home to about 5.9 million people, according to estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Fluctuations in the storm’s intensity are likely while Milton moves across the Gulf of Mexico, the National Hurricane Center said, but it is expected to be a dangerous storm when it reaches Florida.

Those who defy evacuations orders are on their own, and first responders are not expected to risk their lives to rescue them at the height of the storm.

“You do not have to get on the interstate and go far away,” DeSantis told a news conference, assuring residents there would be enough gasoline to fuel their cars for the trip. “You can evacuate tens of miles. You do not have to evacuate hundreds of miles away.”

Milton is forecast to cross central Florida and to dump as much as 18 inches (46 centimeters) of rain while heading toward the Atlantic Ocean, according to the hurricane center. That path would largely spare other states ravaged by Helene, which killed at least 230 people on its path from Florida to the Carolinas.

Tampa prepares for historic storm fueled by warming waters

The arrival of back-to-back hurricanes that rapidly intensified into mighty storms comes as climate change exacerbates conditions that are allowing them to thrive in warming waters. Milton is the 13th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, which started June 1.

Most of Florida's west coast was under a hurricane or tropical storm warning as the system spun just off Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, creeping toward shore and sucking energy from the Gulf of Mexico's warm waters. Hurricane warnings were extended early Tuesday to parts of the state's east coast.

Tampa Bay has not been hit directly by a major hurricane since 1921, and authorities fear its luck is about to run out. Tampa Mayor Jane Castor issued increasingly dire warnings, noting that a 15-foot (4.5-meter) surge could swallow an entire house.

“So if you're in it, basically that's the coffin that you're in,” she said.

There’s no good recent example of how bad it could be because even historic hurricanes such as Andrew, Harvey and Katrina did not actually directly hit a major metropolitan area. They were all to the side, said University of Miami hurricane researcher Brian McNoldy.

“It’s hard to see places coming out of this very well," McNoldy said. “If it’s not the worst case ... even the next worst case is very bad.”

Fuel lines, missed flights and heavy traffic

In Riverview, south of Tampa, several drivers waiting in a long line for fuel Tuesday morning said they had no plans to evacuate.

“I think we’ll just hang, you know — tough it out,” said Martin Oakes, of nearby Apollo Beach. “We got shutters up. The house is all ready. So this is sort of the last piece of the puzzle.”

Ralph Douglas, who lives in neighboring Ruskin, said he, too, will stay put, in part because he worries about running out of gas trying to return after the storm or getting blocked by debris.

“Where I’m at right now, I don’t think I need to evacuate,” he said.

At the Tampa airport, John Fedor and his wife were trying to catch a cab to a storm shelter after missing multiple flights home to Philadelphia. They had hoped taking a Caribbean cruise would bring them closer, but tensions were rising after they spent nearly $1,000 on unplanned transportation and hotel rooms due to travel delays. After a 2-mile (3.2-kilometer) walk to the airport, Fedor’s suitcase cracked open and the wheels broke. They considered driving home or taking a train, but nothing worked out.

“We’re kind of like stranded here," Fedor said.

President Joe Biden approved an emergency declaration for Florida, and the White House announced Tuesday that he would postpone a trip to Germany and Angola to monitor the storm.

“This could be the worst storm to hit Florida in over a century,” Biden told reporters. “God willing it won’t be. But that’s what it’s looking like right now.”

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has almost 900 staff members in the region and has stocked two staging areas with 20 million meals and 40 million liters of water, the White House said.

Stragglers were a problem during Helene and Ian in 2022. Many residents said they evacuated during previous storms only to have major surges not materialize. But there was evidence Tuesday that people were heeding the warnings to get out before Milton arrives.

The Florida Highway Patrol reported heavy traffic northbound and eastbound on all roadways and said state troopers were escorting fuel tankers to assist with gasoline delivery.

About 150 miles (240 kilometers) south of Tampa, Fort Myers Beach was nearly a ghost town. Ian devastated the community two years ago with its 15-foot (4.5-meter) storm surge. Fourteen people died there. On Tuesday, the nearby Callosahatchee River was already choppy, slapping hard against the sea wall.

David Jalving and his family spent the morning putting away planters and outdoor furniture at his parents’ home, which sustained extensive damage from Ian. They moved back in only six months ago.

“It is getting old, and every year it seems that it is getting worse,” said Jalving, who hopes to convince his parents to move. He’s also considering leaving Florida himself.

“I can’t deal with another one,” he said.

In southwest Florida, the streets in the seaside town of Punta Gorda were still filled with furniture, books, toys and even a few hot tubs destroyed by Helene. Scott Joiner, who described bull sharks swimming in the flooded streets during that storm, said the city has been trying to pick up the trash but didn't have enough time before Milton.

“Water is a blessing to have, but it is very deadly,” he said.

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Spencer reported from Fort Myers Beach. Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers Holly Ramer in New Hampshire, Curt Anderson and Kate Payne in Tampa, Freida Frisaro in Fort Lauderdale, Seth Borenstein in Washington and Mark Stevenson in Mexico City.