Residents Return Home
Residents of Florida who traveled hundreds of miles to escape Hurricane Milton returned home slowly along congested highways, exhausted from their long journeys and the cleanup that awaited them, but relieved to be back safe.
“I love my house, but I’m not dying in it,” Fred Neuman said Friday while walking his dog at a rest stop off Interstate 75 north of Tampa.
Neuman and his wife reside in Siesta Key, where Milton made landfall Wednesday night as a strong Category 3 hurricane. Following local evacuation orders, they drove nearly 500 miles (800 kilometers) to Destin on the Florida Panhandle. Neighbors informed them that the hurricane had damaged their carport and caused other issues, but Neuman remained unconcerned, noting that their insurance should cover the damages.
Impact of Hurricane Milton
Hurricane Milton claimed at least 10 lives as it swept through central Florida, causing severe flooding on barrier islands, tearing the roof off the Tampa Bay Rays’ baseball stadium, and spawning deadly tornadoes.
Officials believe the damage could have been greater without the extensive evacuations. The recent devastation from Hurricane Helene, which occurred just two weeks prior, likely motivated many residents to evacuate.
“Helene served as a vivid reminder of how vulnerable certain regions are to storms, particularly along the coast,” stated Craig Fugate, who was the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency under President Barack Obama. “When people witness the destruction firsthand, especially in nearby areas, it can lead to changes in behavior during future storms.”
Evacuation Concerns
Nearby, Lee and Pamela Essenburm prepared peanut butter and jelly sandwiches at a picnic table while cars pulled off the slow-moving interstate, waiting for parking at the busy rest stop. Their home in Palmetto, located on the southern end of Tampa Bay, had a tree fall in the backyard. They had evacuated out of concern that the damage could be worse, fearing Milton might strike as a catastrophic Category 4 or 5 storm.
Successful Evacuations
In Punta Gorda, Mayor Lynne Matthews reported that only three people needed to be rescued from floodwaters after Hurricane Milton passed, a stark contrast to the 121 rescues required following Hurricane Helene’s flooding.
“People heeded the evacuation order,” Matthews stated at a news conference, emphasizing that local authorities ensured residents were informed. “We deployed teams with megaphones throughout our mobile home communities and other areas to alert everyone about the need to evacuate.”
Power Outages and Safety Advisories
As of Friday evening, the number of Florida customers still without power had decreased to 1.9 million, according to poweroutage.us. Residents in St. Petersburg, totaling around 260,000, were advised to boil their water before using it for drinking, cooking, or brushing their teeth until at least Monday.
Traffic along parts of I-75 was slow-moving, with evacuees’ vehicles mixed in with a continuous flow of utility trucks traveling south toward Tampa. While the densely populated city and surrounding Hillsborough County accounted for nearly a quarter of the remaining power outages, Tampa itself was spared from a direct hit, and the dangerous storm surge that scientists had feared did not occur.
Governor’s Warnings
Governor Ron DeSantis urged residents to remain vigilant, highlighting ongoing safety risks such as downed power lines and standing water that may conceal hazardous debris.
“We are now at a point where fatalities can be avoided,” DeSantis stated on Friday. “It’s crucial to make safe choices and be aware of the dangers present.”
Assessing Damage
In coastal Pinellas County, the sheriff’s office utilized high-water vehicles to transport residents back to their homes in a flooded Palm Harbor neighborhood where water levels were still rising.
Madeleine Jiron, along with her husband and their dog, Harry Potter, boarded the sheriff’s truck to return to their neighborhood after evacuating to Tallahassee.
“We have no idea what kind of damage we’ll find,” Jiron remarked. “We’ll see when we get there.”