Hurricane Milton: Schools are acting as shelters for those in Florida evacuating ahead of the storm

Just 10 days after Hurricane Helene blasted the Southeast Coast, Florida residents are preparing to shelter and evacuate to protect themselves from the incoming Hurricane Milton.

Hurricane Milton is over the Gulf of Mexico and is intensifying, and will potentially reach Category 5 strength, per CNN.

The storm is expected to make landfall in Florida on Wednesday.

“As many as 15 million people are under flood watches across the Florida Peninsula and 11 million are at risk for tropical tornadoes tomorrow and Wednesday,” according to NBC News.

On Saturday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an executive order declaring a state of emergency in 35 of Florida’s counties, and on Sunday he amended the order, adding 16 more counties in Florida.

As Florida residents prepare for the storm and plan to evacuate, where do they go for shelter?

Florida schools becoming shelters

Many schools in Florida are being turned into shelters for those evacuating ahead of Hurricane Milton, according to WFLA.

These schools turned shelters include elementary, middle and high schools along with private and charter schools.

Many of the shelters being offered in counties with evacuation orders and warnings opened Monday afternoon or will open Tuesday morning. A few shelters are opening Tuesday evening.

There are also a few community centers in Florida being turned into shelters for the storm.

The majority of shelters being opened in preparation for Milton are general population shelters. But there also also shelters which are specifically meant for special needs as well as pet-friendly shelters also being an option.

According to the Florida Department of Health, general population shelters accommodate a wide range of needs, offering temporary lodging and amenities to those who are displaced by a storm.

FloridaDisaster.org has an index where those in need of shelters can find open shelters near them.

Special needs shelters

According to the Florida Department of Health, “Special needs shelters are designed to meet the needs of persons who require assistance that exceeds services provided at a general population shelter.”

Eligibility for special needs shelters includes those with special medical needs, those whose care exceeds the care provided at general population shelters as well as those with impairments and disabilities who are medically stable.

Some of the available special needs shelters require people to register beforehand, per WFLA.

“If a person is medically stable but needs help with basic tasks or uses an electronic medical device and has no other evacuation options, they should pre-register for a special needs shelter,” per the Florida Department of Health.

It is not required for people with special needs to go to a special needs shelter; some people with disabilities can be safely accommodated in a shelter for the general public.

Pet-friendly shelters

Pet-friendly shelters are available for those sheltering from Hurricane Milton who don’t want to leave their pets at home.

“Evacuation and sheltering operations inevitably involve endangered people who own pets, but most emergency shelters do not accept pets due to health and safety regulations. If there is no opportunity to bring their pets with them to safety, some pet owners will refuse to evacuate or will delay evacuation,” according to ready.gov.

For Hillsborough County’s pet-friendly shelters, residents bringing pets to a shelter need to bring a carrier for each pet, supplies for each pet for seven days, a leash and a collar.

Airport closures in Florida

Tampa International Airport will suspend all commercial and cargo operations ahead of Hurricane Milton, starting Tuesday at 9 a.m.

The St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport will be closing after its last flight on Tuesday, as it is in a mandatory evacuation zone, per Tampabay.com

According to the Orlando Sentinel, Orlando International Airport and Orlando Executive Airport will suspend passenger and private operations Wednesday morning, in preparation for the hurricane.

These Orlando airports will remain open for emergency, aid and relief flights if necessary.

All of these closed airports will not be acting as shelters for people during Hurricane Milton.

Preview of Hurricane Milton

Tropical Storm Milton reached Category 3 status Monday morning and it continues to intensify as it comes closer to striking Florida’s Gulf Coast. According to CNN, preparation for Milton could be the state’s largest storm exodus in seven years.

The storm is expected to reach Category 4 strength on Tuesday. It is due to make landfall between Cedar Key and Naples.

Evacuation orders are ramping up, schools are closing and warnings of storm surges and power failures are being issued.

On Monday morning, Milton reached top sustained wind speeds of 120 mph.

The forecast for Miami, Orlando and Tampa is 2 to 8 inches of rain through Thursday, with some of the state seeing more than 15 inches of rainfall.

Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula has also received a hurricane warning.

According to NBC News, the state’s National Guard has been deployed to areas expected to be in the storm’s path, assisting with cleanup from Helene in anticipation for Milton.