'A Catastrophic Hit': Gov. DeSantis Declares State Of Emergency As Florida Braces For Category 5 Hurricane Milton

On Monday, Florida officials are sounding the alarm and encouraging residents of the Sunshine State to evacuate large swaths of the West Coast as Hurricane Milton officially becomes a Category 5 storm with winds upwards of 175 miles per hour. The notices come after Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency on Saturday for 54 of the state's 67 counties in preparation for one of the strongest storms ever recorded in the Atlantic Ocean.

"Hurricane Milton has strengthened into a major hurricane and is expected to make landfall on the west coast of Florida as soon as Wednesday evening," Gov. DeSantis explained. "[Florida Division of Emergency Management] is addressing more than 600 resource requests from communities in the storm's path. We are deploying truckloads of food and water, ambulances, Starlinks, and more than 2,000 feet of flood protection systems to protect critical infrastructure in Central Florida and the Tampa Bay area. We are also amassing an additional 1.5 million gallons of fuel reserves and staging them to be utilized as needed."

While Florida braces for Hurricane Milton, officials across the state are still cleaning up after Hurricane Helene swept through the northwestern part of the state late last month. "Local officials and their vendors must continue clearing debris from Hurricane Helene before Hurricane Milton makes landfall," the governor wrote on X. "The state of Florida has marshaled unprecedented resources to help with debris removal. The Division of Emergency Management, Florida Department of Transportation, Florida National Guard, Florida State Guard, and the Florida Highway Patrol have been activated and deployed to aid in this mission. Nearly 9,000 cubic yards have been removed from the barrier islands of Pinellas County, and the work will continue for as long as it's safe to do so. As per my Executive Order on Saturday, local landfill and dump sites must remain open 24/7 to safely dispose of debris from Hurricane Helene. We have no time for bureaucracy and red tape."

As Governor DeSantis uses his executive authority to prepare local and state officials for the upcoming storm, other Florida officials have called on residents to evacuate central Florida's west coast immediately as the Category 5 storm approaches. "I am asking everyone to EVACUATE immediately. This is going to be a catastrophic hit," Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) wrote on X. 

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) voiced similar concerns, posting a map from the National Hurricane Center that showed a predicted storm surge upwards of 12 feet. "Several years ago I asked [the National Hurricane Center] to show me what the worst case storm hitting Florida would look like. What they showed me back then is almost identical to the #Milton forecast now," Sen. Marco Rubio explained. "As of this morning, all the models are converging on the same path. This storm is NOT going to turn away at the last minute. If you live in an evacuation zone, the time to leave is as soon as you can. Do NOT wait for the last minute."

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