The devastating storm has led to a wave of flight cancellations for UK holidaymakers
Hurricane Milton caused devastation across Florida upon its arrival this morning as it made landfall. The Category Three storm, said to be the ‘storm of the century’ has led to thousands of people evacuating from the Tampa Bay area.
Milton made landfall near Siesta Key, Florida at about 8.30pm local time. The US National Hurricane Centre reports the hurricane had maximum sustained winds of 120mph with experts cautioning that a potentially fatal storm surge could lead to “extreme flooding”. The US National Weather Service has issued the highest level of flood warning to more than two million residents within Milton’s path.
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The devastating storm has led to a wave of flight cancellations for UK holidaymakers who were due to fly to Florida. Airlines including Virgin Atlantic, British Airways, and Tui have already cancelled flights from the UK to Florida. Several Florida airports are shutting down commercial services, among them Orlando International, Melbourne Orlando International, and Tampa International.
The Met Office said the hurricane could bring uncertainty to UK weather next week if its remnants end up in the Atlantic, but added Milton was “highly unlikely to reach the UK”. The weather service said Milton was expected to be a “dangerous and destructive hurricane as it makes landfall”, with sustained winds of around 130mph along the coast and a significant storm surge.
Milton is expected to weaken to a tropical storm once over the open Atlantic and transition into an extratropical storm after it passes to the south of Bermuda. After this, Milton’s remnant is likely to “either be absorbed into a frontal zone or dissipate in situ in the subtropical Atlantic” the Met Office said.
A UK Government spokesperson said: “We are closely monitoring the development of Hurricane Milton towards the United States. We urge all British nationals in Florida, or travelling to the region, to follow the FCDO travel advice, as well as guidance from local authorities.”
Advice issued to British travellers by the UK Foreign Office, Development and Commonwealth Office earlier this week warned to monitor updates and follow any instructions, including evacuation orders. The advice offered to British tourists includes monitoring approaching storms on the US National Hurricane Center website, following instructions from local authorities, including evacuation orders and visiting the Federal Emergency Management Agency website for information on how to prepare for extreme weather.
A man from Maghull has spoken to the ECHO admitting he is ‘very scared’ as he is now stuck in Florida with his parents. Andrew Knight, 28 flew out to Florida on Thursday, October 3 and planned to take his family to theme parks followed by a few days at the beach.
He and his family members gathered supplies earlier this week. Now supermarket shelves have been stripped bare and people have stockpiled fuel because of the storm. He said: “Friends and family have been quite concerned, we have had some phone calls and of course plenty of messages. We have assured them we are prepared and ready and feel quite safe in our villa. We are hoping to be able to resume our holiday again on Friday, but overall we are just hoping everybody stays safe.”