Powerful Hurricane Milton swept across Florida from east to west overnight from Wednesday to Thursday, causing floods and deadly tornadoes, two weeks after the passage of another destructive hurricane.
Local authorities announced Thursday the death of at least four people in two tornadoes which caused shock the day before in the east of the peninsula. Other tornadoes were observed in the center, south and west of the state before Milton made landfall, causing significant damage in places, such as Fort Myers, where roofs were blown off.
Meteorological services had warned of the risk of tornadoes linked to the hurricane. “This storm produced many tornadoes“, confirmed Republican Governor Ron DeSantis on CNBC on Thursday, saying he feared deaths. Milton also “caused flooding in places like Daytona Beach and St. Augustine“, on the east coast of the peninsula, he said, but also in the heart of Florida, such as in Orlando, where the Disney World theme parks remained closed as a precaution.
However, the worst scenario seems to have been avoided, particularly on the west coast. “The marine submersion was not as significant as during Hurricane Helene, a few weeks ago“, he said, noting that Milton had decreased in intensity and changed trajectory slightly before making landfall. Joe Biden and Ron DeSantis spoke on the phone Thursday morning to discuss the situation, the White House said.
“Very lucky”
The coastal city of Sarasota, located to the west, was picking up activity Thursday morning, with residents rushing to survey the damage. Tree branches and traffic signs litter some streets. “I think we are very lucky“, confides Carrie Elizabeth, a resident. “It will take a long time to clean up, but it could have been much worse“, she assures.
Joe Biden, however, called on the population to “stay inside“for the moment, in particular to avoid”downed power lines, debris, and washed out roads“. Further north, in the city of Saint Petersburg, located in Tampa Bay, the hurricane tore the roof of the baseball stadium and collapsed a crane. More than 3.3 million homes were deprived of current Thursday morning across Florida, according to the specialized site poweroutage.us.
Milton made landfall Wednesday evening on the west coast of Florida as a Category 3 hurricane – on a scale of 5 – and maintained powerful winds as it made its way inland, before reaching Thursday morning the Atlantic. Although it has left the peninsula, the hurricane continues to produce powerful winds and “heavy rain” over central and eastern Florida, warned the American Hurricane Center (NHC).
Milton was expected as “one of the most destructive hurricanes in over a century in Florida“, warned Joe Biden on Wednesday evening.
“Aggravation”
Two weeks after Hurricane Helene passed through the same region, which left at least 237 dead across the southeast of the United States, including at least 15 in Florida, this new hurricane worried the authorities even more. that the numerous debris caused by the first hurricane were still visible in the streets, and could be carried away by the winds.
Florida, the third most populous state in the country and which attracts many tourists, is used to hurricanes. But climate change, by warming the seas, makes their rapid intensification more likely and increases the risk of more powerful phenomena, according to scientists. For Professor John Marsham, specialist in atmospheric sciences, “many aspects of Helen and Milton match perfectly” to what scientists anticipate in terms of climate change.
“Hurricanes need warm oceans to form, and record ocean temperatures fuel these devastating storms. Warm air holds more water, causing heavier rain and more flooding“, he explains. At the same time, “sea level rise due to climate change leads to worsening coastal flooding“.
For more than a year, temperatures in the North Atlantic have been continuously evolving at record levels of heat, according to data from the American Meteorological Observatory (NOAA). These two hurricanes, which occurred one month before an extremely close presidential election, took on a political dimension, with Republicans and Democrats arguing over disaster aid. Former President and Republican candidate Donald Trump accuses the Democrats, at the head of the federal state, of having intervened too late after Hurricane Helen, allegations strongly denied by President Biden and Democratic candidate Kamala Harris.
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