I have lived in Florida for 50 years and this hurricane is the first that has

[1monster]

really scared me. And while we are in the cone, we are at the upper edge of it on the east coast, ergo, what ever we get will be mild compared to what the Gulf Coast will experience, and they have just begun the clean up from Helene. God help them.

Hurricane Matthew hit here in 2016. As storms go,it wasn't anything near the strength of Milton, and yet it completely flooded our little city to the point that the main street by the bay was a part of the bay for a while until the water levels fell to more normal levels. There was nothing to show where the street ended and the bay began... not even the sea wall. And the waters from the river on the other side of town mixed with the waters from the bay.

The winds were strong enough to blow three trees down on my house whose roots could no longer hold on to the over saturated ground.

And Matthew was next to nothing compared to this storm. We will get plenty of wind and rain here, but nothing like St. Peterburg, Tampa, Orlando, and Cape Canaveral will see. Keep them in your thoughts as they go through the storm and the aftermath. The home insurance business in Florida is dreadful and prohibitably expensive. Many will be uninsured and lose everything.

After securing the outside of my house in the morning as best as I can, I'll be taking my invalid husband to the big city 40 miles north where my son has an apartment to wait out the storm. We will be okay...

[soandso]

1. I wish you the best

and hope everything is in good shape when you get back. Based on what you said - east coast, top of the cone - you could be be getting the dirty side of the storm so keep that in mind. I'm glad you're going to your son's place.

[ultralite001]

2. Glad to hear you have some where to go...

Many do not have this simple resource...

Y'all stay safe...

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

3. I am so glad you have a place to go to.

So many people don't.

[Arne]

4. We were in the eye of both Wilma and Irma.

This one will miss us, just.

[soandso]

8. Were you not impacted by Andrew?

[Arne]

12. We were. It was a long time ago and did some, but not much damage

where we live.
The pictures from the east coast show massive impact.
We were ok for that one, we will be ok for this one.

[soandso]

13. If you're that far south

you're likely good.

I remember seeing the flyovers post Andrew to this day. My jaw dropped.

[Arne]

14. Our pool cage came down some time ago

and many huge trees were blown over in my yard.
I physically held the giant glass sliders as 145 mph winds pushed in.
That's something you remember.

[soandso]

15. I can't even imagine

It sounds terrifying.

[Arne]

18. What I most recall from the eye of Wilma

was going down the flooded street.
When I found a storm drain plugged up and cleared the debris
I discovered it was all the mail from my neighbors.

[soandso]

20. There is going to be so much debris with this!!!

All of the piles from Helene are going to go flying.

[SunSeeker]

5. It made a Florida meteorologist start crying on air. It's that bad.

NBC Weatherman Tears Up Reporting on Hurricane Milton as Storm Upgrades to Category 5 | Video
https://www.yahoo.com/news/nbc-weatherman-tears-reporting-hurricane-213407391.html

[orleans]

23. i think the video has been taken down. all i'm seeing is a screen grab but not clickable to start a video

your link said it was originally posted on the wrap which also has the same screen grab but there is no video.

[SunSeeker]

31. It has not been taken down. Here's an NBC Youtube video of him crying.

And if that doesn't work for you, it's all over the internet, just Google "Florida meteorologist crying."

[Deuxcents]

33. He was just interviewed on MSNBC by Katie Phang in for Joy

[SunSeeker]

37. He was on Nicole Wallace's show today too. Great guy. Wish he was Governor of Florida! nt

[Deuxcents]

39. Agree 🗳️

[NJCher]

26. I saw that, too

I said we’re in a new place now when weather people cry on the air.

[CousinIT]

6. I'm glad you'll be safe and have a place to go!

I suspect many insurance companies will be pulling out of FL soon. Many people will be leaving there except the most wealthy who can afford it.

[AverageOldGuy]

7. Good for you

GET OUT.

If you have any friends or neighbors who have decided to ride it out, kiss them goodbye.

[PortTack]

9. Glad to hear you are evacuating...not everyone is thinking this thru

I understand you’ve had non stop rain for 48 hrs, add that to the 8-12’ storm surge expected in Tampa…well, I can’t even imagine. Ppl that chose to stay, good gawd I wish they wouldn’t!

[cactusfractal]

10. Lakeland. Prepared.

Now that all the trees are gone, we have few kinetic threats but the loose household detritus of the neighborhood's least cautious.

Stucco parapet walls. No shingles. No eaves.

Generator up for the likely power loss.

Plywood on all 13 windows tomorrow afternoon.

We will likely leak, but we will stand. We are 50 mi inland and right in the eye path as of 1159ET 7OCT24.

I hate what this place has become, and remind everyone when I can exactly who's responsible. (R)

[soandso]

16. Your structure sounds very good

but, damn, if the track holds, hunker down because you're gonna get pounded!

[A HERETIC I AM]

11. I'm guessing the "big city 40 miles north" is where I live.

I'm about 2 miles from NAS Jacksonville, and just under a mile from the nearest portion of a tributary to the St. Johns that is affected by the tides. The more I look at the warnings, the better I'm feeling about Jax, but it will be no cakewalk, that's for sure. I'll be filling a few plastic bins with water tomorrow and making extra Ice over the next couple days, just in case.

It's a good idea to come up and stay for a bit. Be safe and well.

[1monster]

24. Yes, we are headed to Jax by the afternoon...

Hopefully missing the nasty bands of rain that come before the main event. We are about a mile from UNF.

Stay safe!

[LoisB]

17. I am glad you are able to get out and have a place to go. Stay safe.

[hay rick]

19. Where's Donald Trump with his sharpie, his nukes, and his paper towels?

I live just below the south edge of the cone on the east coast. We're sheltering in place. If the storm track moves south we could be in trouble.

This storm should be a wakeup call...

[Permanut]

21. ...

[MacKasey]

22. Take care and stay safe!

[rubbersole]

25. I'm in Edgewater on the east coast.

Milton has gotten everyone's attention. Been prepping all day. We're going to have a cakewalk compared to the west coast. A good friend in St Pete Beach is virtually homeless (in a hotel for now) from the flooding caused by Helene. That was a 5' storm surge. Milton's is projected to be 10'. It would completely submerge his cars in their garage if they were home. This is storm will be deadly.

[brewens]

27. The insurance thing is a nightmare. I'm waiting to hear how bad it is for people that got burnt out near here

last summer but that will be a joke compared to the hurricanes. Still, Texas had a lot of uninsured people lose everything int their fires too.

I'd be surprised if my ex has insurance on her doublewide. That's one of the reasons why I never moved in with her and that led to us being over. Trumpism took her over too. She had been more of a libertarian type I could deal with.

In depressed areas all over the first thing to go is insurance many times when people are broke. That's gonna be a huge fix. People have to be able to get insurance at a reasonable price.

[appalachiablue]

28. Thanks & sending good thoughts to all of you. Take care, be well. Checking on f/f in Jax.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

29. Any word on Panama City?

[slightlv]

30. This is a dumb question,

but I heard tonight on a live feed (recommended in another message here on DU), that the speed and millibars have both lowered. He is now forecasting a high cat 3 or low cat 4, but admits it will probably ramp up again tomorrow after the eyewall rebuilds. I don't understand the millibars indicator... I know it has to do with the intensity of the storm, but I always thought that was covered by the wind speed. What am I missing?

Also, is Mar-a-Lago anywhere in the path, please? I forget where it is!

[ms liberty]

38. The crying meteorologist explained it perfectly this afternoon.

I think it was on Nicole Wallace. Editing to add, I could not try to explain it, but I understood it when he said it!

[mitch96]

32. I've lived in Florida for over 45 years and this one scares the shit out of me. Been thru a bunch including

Andrew but this one is different. I ran from west Tampa to a friends place in So Fla so I'm very lucky. No traffic when I left Monday morning and I hear its bumper to bumper now. I was in the process of hardening my townhome but the upgrades are too late for this storm.
My next door neighbor is staying so she will keep me updated on the conditions in our neighborhood.
Uff this sucks...
And I was thinking of moving to Asheville....
m

[B.See]

34. I know the feeling all too well.

May you and yours be safe.

[mcar]

35. We are on the north end of the cone

about 70 miles north of Tampa. Been here 32 years. I've never been so nervous about a storm.

I'm breathing a bit easier with the latest paths but things can change in a moment.

The worst part of it is that wherever it hits on the Gulf Coast, they are still a mess from Helene. It's a major disaster.

[malaise]

36. Stay safe