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Hurricane Milton’s windfield is about to come ashore in Florida; Gulf residents told time is up to evacuate

Hurricane Milton’s top winds weakened to 145 mph late Wednesday morning, and the forecast track shifted farther south of Tampa Bay, as Florida’s Gulf coast braces for a devastating blow late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning.

At 1 p.m., the National Hurricane Center reported that tropical-force winds, which means winds of 39-73 mph, were just offshore. The hurricane center recommended that Gulf coast residents who had not evacuated stay inside and keep away from windows.

The storm’s winds dropped under assault from wind shear, the high-level crosswinds that can make it harder for hurricanes to retain power. The storm was expected to produce top winds of 125 mph, putting it at strong Category 3 strength, by the time it slams into the coast.

“We are bracing and are prepared to receive a major hit,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said. “We are facing this with the seriousness that it deserves but also with a determination that we will get through this.”

“While there is the hope that it will weaken more before landfall, there is high confidence that this hurricane is going to pack a major, major punch and do an awful lot of damage,” the governor said.

Biden Warns Floridians to ‘Evacuate Now’ as He Postpones Foreign Trip Over Hurricane Milton

President Biden on Tuesday warned those in the path of Hurricane Milton to “evacuate now, now, now,” as he canceled a diplomatic trip abroad so he could oversee his administration’s response to the storm barreling toward Florida’s west coast.

Speaking from the Roosevelt Room in the White House, the president said he had given Ron DeSantis, Florida’s Republican governor, his personal phone number and he urged Floridians to listen to state authorities.

“I directed this team to do everything you can to save lives and our communities, help our community before, during and after these extreme weather events,” Mr. Biden told reporters after being briefed by disaster response officials. “And that’s being done.”

Evacuations, the president said, are “a matter of life and death.”

Mr. Biden said that Mr. DeSantis had “gotten all that he needs” from the federal government and that the two men had spoken on Monday evening.

Moskowitz Bill Sends $8 Billion to SBA Disaster Loan Fund

Hurricane season continues to wreak havoc in Florida and other states. Floridians are currently reeling from Hurricane Helene while preparing for Hurricane Milton to impact. To fund relief efforts, Florida Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D) has introduced a bill that would send $8 billion to the Small Business Administration (SBA).

Rep. Moskowitz previously served as the Florida Division of Emergency Management. From this experience, he understands "that the Small Business Administration is a lifeline for so many communities after a disaster" as he mentioned in a statement.

"Congress should have proactively funded the SBA and FEMA before going on a months-long recess during hurricane season," Rep. Moskowitz commented, expressing that "the devastation we're seeing across the Southeast, especially in North Carolina and Florida, requires immediate congressional action."

"My bill to fund the SBA will help families and workers impacted by Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton survive until their communities recover."

Florida hospitals and health care facilities in Hurricane Milton's path prepare for the worst

Hospitals and other health care facilities on Florida’s Gulf Coast — still reeling from Hurricane Helene — are now revving up for Hurricane Milton.

The system, which is shaping up to be one of the most powerful to hit the region in years, is expected to make landfall near the Tampa area late Wednesday. Long-term care facilities in counties where mandatory evacuations have been issued are taking their patients elsewhere, while hospitals are largely on guard, preparing to stay open through the storm.

According to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ website, 10 hospitals have reported evacuations as of Tuesday afternoon. Three hundred health care facilities have evacuated as of this morning, the most many of the staff working there could remember, said Florida Agency for Health Care Administration deputy secretary Kim Smoak. That count included 63 nursing homes and 169 assisted living facilities.

Steve McCoy, chief of the Florida Department of Health’s Bureau of Emergency Medical Oversight, said it is the state’s “largest evacuation ever.”