Hurricane Milton – live: Florida warned ‘once in a lifetime’ storm on its way amid Helene cleanup

Hurricane Milton is expected to make landfall in Florida’s Gulf coast as a Category 3 hurricane on Wednesday bringing devastating winds, life-threatening storm surge and flash floods to communities already battered by Hurricane Helene.

Milton rapidly intensified from a tropical storm to a Category 1 hurricane on Sunday, with sustained winds reaching a brutal 90mph, the National Hurricane Center announced.

James Liddell has the full story.

President Joe Biden has been briefed on the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) preparations for Milton, as its anticipated to slam into Florida as a Category 3 hurricane mid-week.

“I have been briefed on Tropical Storm Milton as it strengthens across the Gulf of Mexico and the work my Administration is doing to preposition life-saving resources in advance of the storm,” Biden said in a White House statement on Sunday.

“I urge all residents in Florida to listen to local officials and make preparations as needed.”

He continued: “As these communities brace for potentially yet another catastrophic storm, and as part of my Administration’s solemn obligation to stand with impacted communities as they rebuild their lives, we will continue working hand-in-hand with local and state leaders – regardless of political party and no matter how long it takes.”

Biden is expected to attend another briefing on the federal government’s preparations for Hurricane Milton and response to Hurricane Helene this afternoon.

Milton has rapidly intensified to a Category 3 hurricane with windspeed in the region of 120mph, marking a near-40mph jump in a matter of hours, according to the latest update from the National Hurricane Center.

Milton rapidly intensified to a Category 2 hurricane on Monday morning, with sustained winds surpassing 100mph, the National Hurricane Center announced.

It is currently situated 750 miles away from Tampa Bay on Florida’s west coast, where it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday as a Category 3 hurricane.

Hurricane Milton is tracking towards the northwest, moving “erratically” through the Southern Gulf of Mexico as it hurtles towards the west Florida Peninsula coast.

Donald Trump has condemned President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris’s response to Hurricane Helene, claiming that relief money is being given to immigrants.

The former president has been a vocal critic of the Biden Administration’s response to the the storm which slammed into Florida’s Big Bend last month, taking more than 220 lives and causing hundreds of billions of dollars of damage.

Upon his return to Butler, Pennsylvania, for a rally, the former president falsely claimed that people affected by Hurricane Helene will only received $750 from the federal government.

Now, Trump has taken to Truth Social and claims the Biden Adminstration’s rescue operation is the “worst” in history.

“The the GREAT people of North Carolina are being stood up by Harris and Biden, who are giving almost all of the FEMA money to Illegal Migrants in what is now considered to be the WORST rescue operation in the history of the U.S,” Trump said on Truth Social.

“On top of that, Billions of Dollars is going to foreign countries! NORTH CAROLINA HAS BEEN VIRTUALLY ABANDONED BY KAMALA!!! DROP HER LIKE SHE DROPPED YOU - VOTE FOR PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP. MAGA2024!”

The Pinellas County Sheriff issued an urgent warning for residents to “get out” as the region continues its recovery efforts from Hurricane Helene.

The National Hurricane Center predicts that Milton will become “an intense hurricane with multiple life-threatening hazards” and will likely make landfall on Florida’s Gulf Coast by midweek, as the storm charts its path eastwards as a Category 1 hurricane, according to the NHC’s latest update.

It comes less than two weeks after Helene made landfall at Florida’s Big bend as a devastating Category 4 hurricane on September 26, taking more than 220 lives as it carved its path north through the southeast.

Now, Pinellas County Sheriff has issued a warning ahead of Milton’s prospective landfall as a Category 3 hurricane on Wednesday.

“This is going to be bad. That’s all you need to know,” Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said during an emergency press conference on Sunday afternoon. “Everyone just needs to get out.”

He continued: “In the past, mandatory evacuation orders have been issued and bars stay open. Restaurants stay open. And people just go about their business in stores. That’s not going to happen this time. We’re going to shut you down because we can’t have the tragedy that we had a week and a half ago.”