Today, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis provided the following updates on preparedness efforts for Hurricane Milton.
As of 11:00 a.m. ET, Hurricane Milton is located about 520 miles southwest of Tampa, Florida with maximum sustained winds of 150 mph. Milton will move across the eastern Gulf of Mexico and approach the west coast of Florida through Wednesday. The center is likely to make landfall along the west coast of Florida on Wednesday night and move east northeastward across central Florida through Thursday.
Hurricane Warnings: Brevard, Charlotte, Citrus, DeSoto, Flagler, Hardee, Hernando, Highlands, Hillsborough, Indian River, Lake, Lee, Levy, Manatee, Marion, Orange, Osceola, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, Putnam, Sarasota, Seminole, St. Johns, Sumter, Sumter and Volusia counties.
Hurricane Watches: Clay, Collier, Duval, Glades, Hendry, Nassau and Okeechobee counties.
Tropical Storm Warnings: Broward, Clay, Coastal Franklin, Coastal Jefferson, Coastal Wakulla, Collier, Dixie, Duval, Gilchrist, Glades, Hendry, Lafayette, Martin, Miami-Dade, Monroe (Florida Keys and Dry Tortugas), Nassau, Okeechobee, Palm Beach, St. Lucie, Suwannee, Taylor, Western Alachua and Western Columbia counties.
Tropical Storm Watches: Baker, Bradford, Eastern Alachua, Eastern Columbia, Hamilton, Inland Jefferson, Madison and Union counties.
Storm Surge Warning: Dixie/Levy County line south through Mainland Monroe; southward along the east coast of Florida to Port Canaveral.
Storm Surge Watch: Brevard County
Governor DeSantis issued Executive Order 24-215, amending EO 24-214 and declaring a state of emergency for 51 counties.
The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) reports the following transportation issues of note to highway travelers:
- Tolls have been suspended on facilities in West Florida and Central Florida as well as Alligator Alley and 595 Express to help facilitate traffic flow as Floridians evacuate. Specific details and facilities can be found listed here.
- FDOT and Florida Highway Patrol have implemented Emergency Shoulder Use (ESU) on eastbound I-4 from Tampa to S.R. 417 in Central Florida and on Northbound I-75 in Tampa from North of I-4 to south of I-10 in Columbia County. This operation allows motorists to use the left shoulder as an extra lane in designated areas as well as keeps travel available in both directions – helping to get people out and get supplies and resources in.
- Work has been suspended and project sites secured on construction projects in the counties listed below to ensure all lanes are accessible for evacuations:
- Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Brevard, Broward, Charlotte, Citrus, Clay, Collier, Columbia, DeSoto, Dixie, Duval, Flagler, Gilchrist, Glades, Hamilton, Hardee, Hendry, Hernando, Highlands, Hillsborough, Indian River, Lafayette, Lake, Lee, Levy, Madison, Manatee, Marion, Martin, Miami Dade, Monroe, Nassau, Okeechobee, Orange, Osceola, Palm Beach, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, Putnam, Sarasota, Seminole, St. Johns, St. Lucie, Suwannee, Sumter, Taylor, Union and Volusia counties.
What’s happening on Interstate 4 RIGHT NOW! I-4 Real-time traffic information for selected cities along I-4. Maps show updates on road construction, traffic accidents, travel delays and the latest traffic speeds. Traffic cameras show congestion at a glance. Visit I-4 Traffic.
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