Hurricane Michael Threatens 'Unimaginable Devastation'

TALLAHASSEE, FL – Calling it the "worst storm the Florida Panhandle has seen in a century," Florida Gov. Rick Scott said residents can expect to see conditions deteriorate rapidly over the next few hours as Hurricane Michael bears down on north Florida, packing 145-mph winds.

In a news conference at 8:45 a.m., Scott said 375,000 people have been evacuated from Citrus, Bay, Escambia, Santa Rosa, Dixie, Taylor, Wakulla, Franklin, Liberty, Gulf, Okaloosa, Walton and Jefferson counties. Additionally, officials have called for voluntary evacuations along the coast of Hernando and Pasco counties. Fifty evacuation shelters have been opened for evacuees.

Scott said Hurricane Michael is continuing to gain strength and could be upgraded to a Category 5 hurricane before it reaches Florida sometime this afternoon.

"A Category 5 has never made landfall in the Panhandle," he said. "It could bring unimaginable devastation. I'm praying to God that people will be safe."

The National Hurricane Center has revised its original storm surge estimate for the Panhandle from 8 to 12 feet to 9 to 13 feet.

"The storm surge could easily rise over the roofs of homes," Scott said. Combined with the estimated 12 inches of torrential rains, Scott said flooding is going to be a major issue.

"That's a foot of rain that's expected to fall," he said.

While the majority of those living in the mandatory evacuation zones have heeded the order to leave, Scott said he learned yesterday that there are about 50 people on one of the barrier islands in the Panhandle that are determined to stay put.

"I'm scared to death for them," he said. "I just hope there aren't children there. This storm has already taken lives in Central America."

Once the storm passes, Scott said he's confident Florida has the supplies and personnel in place to begin recovery efforts.

He said he spoke with President Trump just before the press conference who assured him that he would provide whatever resources Florida might need.

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Waiting at the ready are 1,000 search and rescue team members, 3,500 Florida National Guardsmen, 135 Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission officers and 300 Florida Highway Patrol troopers. Another 100 troopers are already on the ground, keeping an eye on roads and bridges that may need to be closed due to dangerous conditions.

After the storm, Scott said there of dozens of Florida Department of Transportation crews staged throughout the Panhandle to clear roads so rescuers can get supplies and personnel to impacted areas.

"We will work around the clock to make sure roads and bridges are open as soon as possible," he said.

While there are scattered power outages, Scott said there are no communications outages at this time.

"There are 19,000 personnel prepared to begin restoring power after the hurricane," he said. "Getting the power back on is a top priority because it's critical to the restoration efforts."

National Hurricane Center Director Ken Graham said Hurricane Michael could conceivably impact areas well beyond the cone of impact.

"This is a huge storm," he said. "We're looking at a 20o-mile wind spread from the center of the hurricane. This is going to be a devastating storm, possibly historical."

He said there's a possibility of hurricane-force winds all the way into Georgia, and the Carolinas are likely to see torrential rain, flooding already-swollen rivers.

This is the worst storm that the FL Panhandle has seen in over a century. I cannot stress enough, no matter where you are in the Panhandle, it is time to find shelter. See my latest update on Hurricane Michael- https://t.co/aPoLqnUg5S pic.twitter.com/TiF6YEFE0r
— Rick Scott (@FLGovScott) October" class="redactor-linkify-object">https://twitter.com/FLGovScott... 10, 2018

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Photo via Patch

As far south as Fort DeSoto Park in Pinellas County, water levels have risen over sea walls, flooding streets.