Couple on honeymoon to Disneyland Florida felt hotel shake during hurricane

A newlywed couple on their honeymoon at Disneyland in Florida said they felt their hotel room “rumbling and shuddering” after being hit by Hurricane Milton.

Rebecca Hargrave, 38, and her husband, Isaac Hargrave, 25, from Poole in Dorset, said there is no access to public transport in Orlando which has forced them to stay in their hotel room at Disney’s All-Star Sports Resort to avoid torrential rain and waterlogged roads.

The couple have stayed in their hotel room for more than a day and said they saw their windows shaking in the early hours of Thursday morning as Hurricane Milton made landfall as a Category 3 storm.

Speaking from their hotel room, Mrs Hargrave told the PA news agency: “The building that we’re in is a really sturdy concrete building, so I can’t imagine what it would be like for other people, but you could feel the building rumbling and shuddering.

“The windows were shaking in the frames and I could hear the wind whistling.”

She said there is “no public transport” other than transport provided by Disney, which “doesn’t go to any shops other than Disney shops”.

“It just goes around the Disney Resort and they’ve shut all that down, so you can’t walk anywhere. It’s not safe to walk anywhere,” she added.

On Monday, they said they received a nationwide alert on their phone warning them about flash flooding in their area, which prompted them to head to the supermarket on Tuesday to stock up on supplies such as bottled water, bread, sandwich fillings and snacks.

They said they were “completely drenched” after their shopping trip.

“Our shoes got completely sodden,” said Mrs Hargrave, who is a carer.

“Everywhere was sandbagged and you could already see where the puddles were going to form, and the roads were really waterlogged.

Mr Hargrave, who works as a chef, added: “It was halfway up your foot and covering your shoe. All of the roofs were pouring off with water.”

The couple described the supermarkets in Orlando as “crazy” as people bought essentials ahead of the hurricane while they bought supplies to avoid leaving their hotel room.

“It was kind of like Covid in the supermarkets,” Mrs Hargrave said.

“No toilet paper, no water. We went to Walmart… and it was crazy.”

Mr and Mrs Hargrave booked their honeymoon to Disney World before they married in June and chose to visit in October believing they would miss the hurricane season.

Mrs Hargrave said she was aware of a hurricane a week before their holiday and came equipped with a first aid kit in case of an emergency.

“I’ve been quite prepared anyway coming over here because I brought medication,” she said.

“I have to take medication every day and I brought medication for a month with me, just in case anything happened. I always try and travel with a first aid kit.”

The couple consider themselves “lucky” and feel fortunate to be in a position where they are safe and sheltered.

“We’re completely fine. I feel like we are really lucky. Compared to what other people have been going through it’s not really been much trauma,” Mrs Hargraves said.

“Whatever happens you can’t do anything it. You’re completely powerless. You can’t leave, you can’t go anywhere. So you’ve just got to be prepared and make the best of it.”

The couple arrived in Orlando on October 1 and are due to fly back to the UK on Friday evening.