Taking on Mother Nature: Dozens risk ignoring flight-or-die warnings to face the monster Hurricane Milton head-on
Dozens of risk-takers ignored warnings to flee or die and faced the wrath of Hurricane Milton head-on by frolicking in the storm’s bad weather.
Milton brought high winds, a deadly storm surge and flooding to much of Florida Wednesday evening after making landfall along the Gulf Coast as a Category 3 storm.
Before the cyclone arrived, thousands of residents evacuated their homes in an attempt to survive afterward authorities warned ‘if you stay, you will die’.
But dozens of stubborn locals stayed behind and chose to embrace the storm, with some surfing, running along the beach, posing for photos in heavy rain and doing push-ups along a pier as the waves roared past.
One man was even caught on CCTV braving Milton’s tough conditions to share his support for former President Donald Trump by battling high winds and downpour and displaying a campaign flag on a pier.
An idiotic couple ignored urgent pleas to evacuate and chose to take selfies at the southernmost point of Key West as Hurricane Milton barreled in
A man braved Hurricane Milton on Wednesday and planted a Trump 2024 flag on a pier in Naples, Florida, as high winds and waves battered the dock
The Southernmost Point buoy was battered by rain and high winds on Wednesday, but that didn’t seem to stop people from enjoying the iconic Key West landmark.
Cameras captured a slew of people visiting the buoy to take selfies and pose for photos as Milton passed through Florida.
The livestream later captured a runner, seemingly playing for the cameras, jumping to the ground and doing a series of push-ups as waves crashed over him.
Thousands of people tuned into the stream to watch Milton roll in, with one person commenting that those frolicking in the storms are evidence of “natural selection at its finest.”
Nearby, beachgoers were seen running along the shore, taking dips in the ocean and even surfing as the storm raged.
Another livestream, from a pier camera in Naples, captured the moment a man carrying a Trump 2024 flag successfully attached the banner to the pier.
As he walks away, the flag has the upper hand against the strong wind; although it is unclear how long it lasted. Currently the live camera is offline.
A Tampa man also made headlines Wednesday after he decided to go for a jog after the city went into lockdown in preparation for Milton’s landfall.
As thousands watched a livestream of the area to watch Milton roll in, a runner, seemingly playing for the cameras, jumped to the ground and did a few push-ups as the waves crashed over him.
A group of surfers are seen riding the strong waves in Key West on Wednesday as Milton rolls in
A man poses for a photo with the Southernmost Point buoy in Key West as the iconic landmark was battered by rain and high winds on Wednesday
A Tampa man also made headlines Wednesday after he decided to go for a jog after the city went into lockdown in preparation for Milton’s landfall.
Milton is “one of the most destructive hurricanes on record for west-central Florida,” according to the National Hurricane Center.
The hurricane brought powerful winds, a deadly storm surge and flooding to much of Florida on Wednesday evening after making landfall along the Gulf Coast as a Category 3 storm.
The cyclone, which has since weakened to a Category 1 storm, was expected to cause catastrophic damage in the Tampa Bay region, prompting a mass evacuation order and stark warnings from authorities that “if you stay, you will die ‘.
Despite evacuation orders, dozens of stubborn individuals decided to hide and wait out the storm.
Milton had maximum sustained winds of 125 mph when it made landfall in Siesta Key, south of the populated Tampa Bay region, the National Hurricane Center said.
The hurricane brought deadly storm surge to much of Florida’s Gulf Coast, including heavily populated areas such as Tampa, St. Petersburg, Sarasota and Fort Myers.
As it moved through the state early Thursday, it weakened to a Category 1 storm. Power outages were widespread and deaths have been reported due to severe weather.
Debris along Commonwealth Drive, Siesta Key clogs the roadway Thursday after Hurricane Milton made landfall overnight
A tornado severely damaged a home on the Binks Estate in Wellington, Florida, on Wednesday before Hurricane Milton made landfall
A boat rests on a road in Port Charlotte, Florida on Thursday after Hurricane Milton made landfall
A man walks through the water flooding the street after Hurricane Milton made landfall in the Sarasota area on Wednesday
Storm debris blocks a road in Sarasota, Florida, on Thursday, just hours after Hurricane Milton tore through the area
The center of Milton moved off the east coast of Florida early Thursday with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph, the National Hurricane Center said. The storm is expected to move further away from the peninsula and into the northern Bahamas.
As Milton barreled northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, all hurricane and tropical storm warnings for the state’s west coast were halted.
Storm surge warnings remained in effect for parts of Florida’s west coast, and along the state’s east coast as far as Altamaha Sound, Georgia. Hurricane and tropical storm warnings were also in effect for much of the state’s east-central coast.
The devastating cyclone in central Florida left more than three million homes and businesses without power, according to power outage data. Florida’s central Gulf Coast was hardest hit by the outages, including Hardee, Sarasota, Hillsborough and Manatee counties.
At least two deaths were reported at a nursing home after a suspected tornado in Fort Pierce on Florida’s east coast, NBC News reported, citing St. Lucie County Sheriff Keith Pearson. His department did not immediately respond to a request for details.
There was flash flooding in the Tampa Bay area, including the cities of Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater, the hurricane center said, with St. Petersburg already receiving 18 inches of rain on Wednesday.
Although Milton weakens to Category 1, officials warn the danger remains in Florida as high winds and heavy rain continued Thursday morning.
