Milton’s Tropical Storm Force Winds Arriving Now

As of this afternoon, Milton is predicted to make landfall in the Sarasota area, with confidence increasing as it moves closer to the west coast, said David DeCarlo, Hernando County Emergency Operations Center director.

Milton should make landfall late tonight or early tomorrow morning, but Hernando County will begin to feel tropical-storm-force winds this afternoon, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Hernando County is currently under a hurricane warning, storm surge warning and flood warning.

The National Hurricane Center has lessened its storm surge prediction for Hernando County to 2 to 4 feet, but DeCarlo warns that things can still change dramatically.

Yesterday, taking utmost precautions, the Florida Department of Emergency Management installed a “Tiger Dam” at the Weeki Wachee Area Club to protect the coastal polling location in preparation for Hurricane Milton.

Last night, Chewy donated 250 crates to Hernando County for pet-friendly shelters.

DeCarlo stated that torrential downpours 10-18 inches are forecasted, which will cause inland flooding and the Withlacoochee River is expected to reach major flood stage later in the week.

Residents can expect long-term power outages.

David Lambert, WREC general manager, said they are significantly upsizing their resources. There are several hundred line contractors and additional personnel coming in as far away as Texas and Canada to help restore power.

He said that because Helene’s recovery efforts are still underway in Georgia and the Carolinas, the availability of line crew is scarce.

The track of the hurricane coming down I-4 is where many power generation stations and major transmission lines are located. Those power-generating facilities have to be brought back online if they are damaged and the transmission facilities will have to be repaired. WREC will continue to repair lines in the area, but they may not be able to energize some lines until those transmission capabilities are up and running.

There are nearly 400 contract linemen on the system already staged throughout their service area, with more arriving tomorrow after the storm.

DeCarlo said debris collection from Hurricane Helene stopped at noon today. The landfill and West Side Convenience Center closed at noon.

Republic Services will not be operating today or tomorrow.

Sandbag locations are now closed and over 65,000 sandbags were distributed.

Hernando County Commissioner Jerry Campbell said the Withlacoochee River in Ridge Manor is expected to reach major flood stage on Saturday and into Sunday.

You can track the flooding at www.weather.gov/serfc

Sandbag stations will be open after the storm passes.

Local hospitals are remaining open.

Emergency Departments at TGH Brooksville, TGH Spring Hill and TGH Crystal River will remain open through the storm to support emergency response efforts. The TGH Crystal River Emergency Center will also remain open to respond to medical emergencies.

All TGH North locations are stocked with a surplus of food, water, and medical essentials to support continued operations throughout the storm. Back-up generators and additional fuel supplies will ensure services are uninterrupted in the event of power outages.

Given forecasted conditions, they are working to discharge patients who can safely go home or to a county shelter.

Physician clinics and Ambulatory Surgery Centers will be closed on Wednesday, October 9 and Thursday, October 10.

The County’s Logistics Resource Center is prepared to assist with any governmental response, such as Family Resource Center needs, providing generated power to traffic lights, shelter needs, pet supplies, and navigating search and rescue.

This center is stocked with 80 pallets of water, 30 pallets of MREs, 2500 tarps, 500 clean-up kits, side-by-sides and more.