People still remaining in the path of Hurricane Milton in Florida have now been warned “not to hunker down” as “10-foot storm surges” are expected in a matter of hours
Hurricane Milton: Tornado heads through Wellington on Southern Blvd
This is the terrifying moment a tornado ripped through Florida as Hurricane Milton churns towards the state.
The latest of several tornadoes has battered Wellington on Southern Blvd in Wellington, a suburban area popular with families. The video shows it twist through the area, as the apocalyptic weather sweeps its way through the state.
The hurricane itself, a category four storm, is yet to even reach land at Florida so the worst of the weather is yet to come, fear meteorologists. Yet, thousands of people are without power in the state already.
The US Coastguard has now pre-staged and prepositioned personnel, aircraft and boats in advance of Hurricane Milton, thought to be Florida’s worst hurricane in a century.
One reporter tweeted: “Tornado damage here in Fort Myers ahead of Hurricane #Milton making landfall. Roofs completely blown off homes. People now seeking alternate shelter. Orangewood Avenue. Downed trees, power lines, fences. Power is out. Thankfully, no reported injuries.”
This journalist also shared a video of the destruction so far, which shows the scale of the tornado, one of several which have already swept across the state. No injuries have been reported as of yet, but governor for Florida, Ron DeSantis, said today: “Unfortunately there will be fatalities. I don’t think there’s any way around that.” Gov. Ron DeSantis said to people choosing to remain home on barrier islands, “just know that if you get 10 feet of storm surge, you can’t just hunker down with that.”
Coastguard crews are ready to assist with urgent search and rescue, to assess damage to seaports and expedite their safe reopening, and to respond to marine pollution incidents resulting from the storm.
There are 27 aircraft, including 17 on immediate standby and 10 Coast Guard Auxiliary aircraft. There are also 30 cutters and three floodwater response teams, with 16 crews and 19 boats stationed at Camp Blanding in northeast Florida. And tourism in Orlando rapidly came to a standstill on Wednesday with the main airport and at least three theme parks and other businesses set to close, leaving Florida residents and visitors fleeing Hurricane Milton to hunker down in area hotels.
Milton, which is expected to come ashore late Wednesday as a major storm, threatened to ruin the vacations of tens of thousands of tourists who came to Orlando to visit the likes of Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando and SeaWorld, or partake in October festivities like Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights. Disney and Universal were due to close Wednesday afternoon while SeaWorld did not open at all. All are expected to remain closed on Thursday.
Orlando International Airport, the nation’s seventh busiest and Florida’s most trafficked, ceased operations Wednesday morning. The closures tempered expectations for some tourists while the impending storm raised some anxiety in others.
