‘If you stay, you will die,’ Tampa Mayor urges residents to evacuate before Hurricane Milton hits

As Hurricane Milton advances toward Florida’s west coast, officials are urgently urging residents in affected areas to evacuate. Mandatory evacuation orders have been issued for regions surrounding Tampa Bay, including Pinellas, Hillsborough, Pasco, and Manatee counties.

As of 11 a.m. EDT, the hurricane was centered 545 miles southwest of Tampa, packing 150 mph winds and tracking east-northeast at 9 mph, making it a Category 4 storm, the second-highest rating. Earlier, the storm had rapidly intensified into a Category 5 hurricane. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) has warned that Tampa could face up to 15 feet of storm surge as the hurricane approaches.

In a stern warning during a CNN interview on October 7, Tampa Mayor Jane Castor did not hold back: “I can say this without any dramatization whatsoever: If you choose to stay in one of those evacuation areas, you are going to die.” Her alarming message underscores the seriousness of the situation as Milton is expected to make landfall in the Tampa Bay area on October 9.