Hurricane Michael is barreling toward Florida with a vengeance, and is expected to make history as the first Category 4 storm on record to make landfall over the Panhandle. The storm’s “unprecedented” strength has officials warning residents of dangerous, life-threatening conditions and storm surges up to 13 feet.
Here’s what to know about Hurricane Michael, the storm’s path, when it’s supposed to make landfall and just how dangerous it’s expected to be.
Here’s where Hurricane Michael’s path is headed
As of Wednesday at 7 a.m. CDT, Hurricane Michael was about 90 miles southwest of Apalachicola and Panama City, Fla., and moving north at around 13 miles per hour, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC). Hurricane Michael is set to make landfall over the Florida Panhandle on Wednesday, the NHC predicts. After that, it’s set to reach Alabama and Georgia by early Thursday, continuing up toward the Carolinas and Virginia on Thursday and early Friday and weakening as it makes its way up the coast. By the weekend, the storm’s center should be back out over the Atlantic, the NHC says.
Hurricane Michael expected to be “extremely dangerous” to the Florida Panhandle
After being upgraded first to a Category 2, then a Category 3, storm on Tuesday, Hurricane Michael is predicted to be an “extremely dangerous” Category 4 hurricane when it makes landfall Wednesday, with winds reaching 145 miles per hour, according to the NHC. The National Weather Service (NWS) has no record of a Category 4 hurricane making landfall over the Florida Panhandle, leading it to warn residents that the storm is “an unprecedented event” that is “not comparable to anything we’ve seen before.”
Hurricane Michael to bring dangerous storm surge
A storm surge warning is currently in effect in Florida from the Okaloosa/Walton County line to Anclote River, as well as from Anclote River to Anna Maria Island, including Tampa Bay. For the next 36 hours, these areas face possibly “life-threatening inundation, from rising water moving inland from the coastline,” the NHC says. Some areas could expect to see up to 13 feet of water.
A hurricane warning is also in effect from the Alabama/Florida border to Florida’s Suwannee River, while tropical storm warnings have been issued as far north as North Carolina.
What Florida officials are warning about Hurricane Michael
Florida Gov. Rick Scott warned on Twitter that Hurricane Michael could be “deadly” and “catastrophic to the FL Panhandle,” and urged residents to take shelter. “I’m asking all Floridians to stay vigilant throughout tonight and tomorrow as we brace for Hurricane Michael to make landfall,” he tweeted early Wednesday morning.
Sen. Marco Rubio, meanwhile, warned that the storm could bring a “storm surge that can’t be survived.”
What areas are under mandatory evacuations from Hurricane Michael
More than 375,000 Floridians were told to evacuate leading up to Hurricane Michael, the Associated Press reports. Mandatory evacuation orders were in effect for at least some people in Bay, Dixie, Franklin, Jackson, Levy, Okaloosa, Wakulla, Walton and Gulf counties, while voluntary or phased evacuation plans were in place for parts of Calhoun, Hernando, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty, Pasco, Santa Rosa, Taylor and Gadsen counties. Tolls were suspended in Northwest Florida as of Tuesday, to assist with travel and evacuation plans.
Scott warned Wednesday morning, however, that “the time for evacuating along the coast has come and gone,” and that anyone who chose to remain in these high-risk evacuation zones should shelter in place.
Emergency declarations have also been issued for 92 Georgia counties and the state of Alabama, prompting many in these states to evacuate. Airbnb is offering free shelter to evacuees in some parts of Florida, Georgia and Alabama.
How Florida is preparing for Hurricane Michael
In addition to evacuation plans, Scott requested and was granted a pre-landfall emergency declaration from President Donald Trump, according to a statement from his offie. The declaration frees up funding, resources and personnel to help Florida weather the storm. Scott on Monday also declared a state of emergency in 35 Florida counties.
At least 32 shelters are in operation, according to the statement, and the state is supporting sheltering operations along the Panhandle. The Florida National Guard has also supplied 2,500 soldiers and airmen to assist with emergency response, along with local law enforcement operations. Environmental, medical and public health resources have also activated emergency preparedness plans.
In preparation for the storm, airports including Tallahassee International Airport, Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport, Pensacola International Airport and Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport closed to commercial flights on Wednesday. A total of 237 U.S. flights had been cancelled as of Wednesday morning, according to FlightAware, with many clustered in the Florida area.
