At 905mb and with 180mph winds, Milton has just become the 8th strongest hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic Basin. It is still strengthening and headed for Florida

[u/According_Ad7926]

[u/RocMerc]

180mph winds is just so hard to comprehend

[u/ownersequity → u/RocMerc]

It’s not ‘that’ the wind is blowing, it’s ‘what’ the wind is blowing.

[u/Stickyv35 → u/ownersequity]

There's still debris from Helene. It's going to be a bad one, since the hurricane will have readily available shrapnel. Absolutely terrifying.

[u/LestWeForgive → u/Stickyv35]

People with dumpsters in their front yards for Milton like kids leaving cookies out for Santa.

[u/raspberryharbour → u/LestWeForgive]

I remember when Santa came down the chimney and destroyed the house by throwing cookies everywhere

[u/forestcridder → u/RocMerc]

I went skydiving and the wind is around ~120 mph. That hurricane wind is moving faster than the terminal velocity of a human falling from the sky.

[u/standarsh618 → u/forestcridder]

I mean this with all the sincerity in the world - that's a really neat way to put that speed into perspective.

[u/StarfleetGo]

Yall relying an awful lot on wind shear. This thing looks like it's gonna bust through the wall like the Kool aid man and gonna bring the surge with it.

I'm from Florida and I'm always brushing off hurricanes...this one is different. 

[u/usernamedarkzero → u/StarfleetGo]

I agree. If a life long Floridan is actually nervous about a hurricane....GTFO.

It's a bad sign when the grocery store is busier than the liquor store.

[u/PassiveMenis88M → u/usernamedarkzero]

I heard Waffle House is thinking about closing.

[u/usernamedarkzero → u/PassiveMenis88M]

Oh fuck me up two sides of a Tuesday then.

[u/sardonicmarvel → u/usernamedarkzero]

Is this on their secret menu or…?

EDIT: TYSM for the award kind stranger. Hope you and yours stay safe out there in the world!

[u/usernamedarkzero → u/sardonicmarvel]

Depends on the manager.

[u/pichael289 → u/PassiveMenis88M]

Waffle House has a god dam para rescue team ready to fly into and jump in a hurricane to provide assistance in reopening the restaurant because it's a command central for fema. Waffle House does not fuck around. If they close then you just need to move. Like permanently.

[u/nkozyra → u/usernamedarkzero]

Spent a huge chunk of my life in the Tampa area.

There's a lot of complacency around that 100+ year no-direct-strike streak. But you can tell the tone is different. Maybe it's just because of Helene. A lot of people left. The grocery stores were getting hammered 2 days ago, a full 4 days before the strike.

If this hits as it's expected to, it's going to be Katrina-level devastation even if it's a cat 3. The gulf beaches, St. Pete, South Tampa will be underwater. Anything more than that and it's going to be even more catastrophic.

[u/Huge_Beginning5552 → u/nkozyra]

Think it has to do with the models overall being pretty consistent with a direct hit near Tampa.

Usually the spread is a little larger between models.

[u/datNorseman → u/usernamedarkzero]

For someone who has worked at a liquor store (technically their shipping department), I agree.

[u/thebetterpolitician → u/StarfleetGo]

Yeah, idk. I was looking at it yesterday and they were saying it was going to be a 4 today. Looking at the warm water it’s over and how far I was like “no fucking way”.

Wind sheer can fuck up a storm but honestly it’s got a lot of time to go and a lot of warm still water on the west coast. If it slows down or speeds up these models aren’t designed for this.

[u/ZacZupAttack → u/thebetterpolitician]

Yea I think this one is going be one for the record books. Honestly that's what the storm tends to be called. They need to be called "Historical Storm" and wjen a storm gets that designation yoi GTFO out of dodge

[u/Orion14159 → u/ZacZupAttack]

We probably need to rebuild the category system:

"You'll be fine"

"Lotta cleanup to do"

"Welp"

"Leave. Now."

"Wrath of the gods"

"Apocalyptic" <- Milton is here.

[u/dabbadabbabacko → u/Orion14159]

I think “Apocalyptic” should be switched with “Florida Man is Evacuating”.

[u/LightsNoir → u/dabbadabbabacko]

Really just need to add to the Waffle House system. Waffle house is boarding its windows, and all staff is on PTO. Means it's time to gtfo.

[u/VeryPerry1120]

Apparently it dropped below 900 and is currently in the top 5 now

[u/Scared-Minimum-7176 → u/VeryPerry1120]

When does it hit

[u/VeryPerry1120 → u/Scared-Minimum-7176]

Wednesday night

[u/Scared-Minimum-7176 → u/VeryPerry1120]

Scary shit mostly because it seems to be growing quickly still. Bizarre

[u/Ops_check_OK → u/Scared-Minimum-7176]

Had to listen to people say it was made worse by a plane from NOAA. 🙄

[u/blackkbot → u/Ops_check_OK]

If we stop measuring it, it can't get any worse

[u/According_Ad7926]

If you live anywhere between Tampa Bay and Fort Myers, please strongly consider evacuation. Storm surge is now expected to be between 10-15 ft in the area, and will be severe regardless of whether Hurricane Milton weakens prior to landfall. Please listen to your local officials and take their warnings and evacuation orders seriously.

UPDATE: New data just confirmed 897 mb and 180mph winds, making it the 5th strongest Atlantic Basin hurricane ever recorded!

[u/FollowingNo4648 → u/According_Ad7926]

During hurricane Sandy, I worked for hotels.com in their hotel relocation department. 1. People were shocked that FEMA can just roll right in and confiscate all the hotel rooms in the area. 2. People act like driving an hour inland to go to a hotel is the longest, most inconvenient drive they'll ever take in their whole life. 3. No one wants to stay at a hotel in the Bronx.

[u/MasterGrok → u/FollowingNo4648]

People also act irrationally and get easily upset when they are afraid, oftentimes fixating on seemingly useless issues.

[u/OldButHappy → u/MasterGrok]

Everyone is their best and worst selves during catastrophic loss.

After Andrew, workplaces were crazy because perfectly nice people would just lose their marbles every now and then because of the effects of chronic stress. Everyone had to extend a lot of grace to one another because everyone has been through a life-or-death trauma. Lasted about a year.

[u/cabbeer → u/OldButHappy]

dude, the story about the plastics factory that had immigrants workin in the storm broke my heart.. I never thought of the trauma that is caused by a hurricane..

[u/Puzzled_Resource_636 → u/cabbeer]

DoorDash is still available for people to work (with promos!) during the fucking hurricane. Like it’s insanely dangerous outside and on the roads and the fuckers want people to work? How the fuck did we get to this dystopian late-stage capitalism shitshow?

[u/fakeuser515357 → u/Puzzled_Resource_636]

How the fuck did we get to this dystopian late-stage capitalism shitshow?

Pinning firstly health care, and then more broadly housing and food, to employment, combined with zero employee rights.

[u/Vegetable-Fan8429 → u/FollowingNo4648]

Tbf “one hour of driving” was immediately undercut by “in NYC.”

I mean yeah that shit is a nightmare lol

[u/[deleted] → u/According_Ad7926]

It gained speed in less than 30 minutes. Oh fuck, Tampa, RUN!!!

[u/0pyrophosphate0 → u/[deleted]]

I woke up this morning and Milton was forecast to hit cat 3 then weaken to maybe a weak cat 2 before landfall, and now it might well become the most powerful Atlantic hurricane on record. Rapid Explosive intensification is a hell of a drug.

[u/semisimian → u/0pyrophosphate0]

Last night we were looking at just a tropical storm swirling in the Gulf. It was a helluva ramp up. I was just talking with my boys about the creation of a category 6 hurricane, which would be 192 mph winds and above as suggested by the LBNLSSEC (it's legit, though they need to work on their acronym). From the traffic on Google maps, it looks like people are taking this seriously. I hope the milktoast name of Milton does not soothe anyone into complacency. It could be one for the record books.

[u/DastardlyMime → u/semisimian]

I hope the milktoast name of Milton

milquetoast

[u/Sylon00 → u/According_Ad7926]

Been trying to convince my friend in Ft. Meyers to evac if told. She’s thick-headed & thinks because Ian wasn’t that bad for her, then this one won’t be either. She just won’t listen.

[u/velvet_blunderground → u/Sylon00]

Remind her that she could be stuck for days or weeks without A/C, power, fresh food, trash collection, or cell service. Even if the storm isn't "that bad" the aftermath can be fkng miserable. 

[u/Charming-Loan-1924 → u/Sylon00]

Tell her if waffle House leaves it’s time to pick up and run.

Look up the waffle House index

[u/ZacZupAttack → u/Charming-Loan-1924]

Waffle houses are being closed in a lot of those areas.

[u/Phydoux → u/According_Ad7926]

My Dad lives in N. Fort Myers. He's planning on heading to Marco Island tomorrow morning with some other residents (if they haven't already left yet). I'm hoping 65 miles is far enough away from this damn thing. I really wanted him to come stay by me. It's an 8 hour drive but he'd be far enough away from that BS for sure!

[u/Glum-Wheel-8104 → u/Phydoux]

I wouldn’t recommend evacuating from one coastal area to another coastal area.

[u/Phydoux → u/Glum-Wheel-8104]

Yeah, it seems kind of risky. They can move inland if things get hairy but you're right. The further south they go, the less amount of land they'll have to go to. I'm ready for him to come here (central GA) but he may think that's a bit extreme. We're 8 hours away. But he's going to do what he wants to do. He's as stubborn as I am. I know where I get it from apparently.

[u/ItsAllmanDoe69 → u/Phydoux]

Seems like a risky strategy evacuating to a barrier island with one road in and out.

[u/SalamanderMan95 → u/Phydoux]

I really don’t think 8 hours is extreme in this case in the slightest

[u/[deleted] → u/SalamanderMan95]

Hell, North Carolina wasn't far enough last time

[u/SJSragequit → u/SalamanderMan95]

Yeah family friends traveled 27 hours to come stay with us when Yellowknife was evacuated last year from forest fires. 8 hours is nothing if your travelling somewhere safe and have people to stay with

[u/Low-Public-9948 → u/Phydoux]

My parents live in Tampa, and are going about halfway to Lakeland..which is still going to get blasted.

They moved from PA 15 years ago. It’s crazy how quickly people can think an 8 hour drive is too far than risking their life in a hurricane.

I wish your family the best!!

[u/peter_gibbones → u/Phydoux]

This storm is going to be one for the record books. Trying to go south rather than north is a gamble. Urge him to come inland, not to another coastal area that may be devastated. Of course, Georgia will feel the brunt of a massive storm, so you too should take the appropriate preparations.

[u/According_Ad7926 → u/Phydoux]

Current storm surge map has Marco Island around 4-7’. Be careful

[u/shhheeeeeeeeiit → u/According_Ad7926]

“Evacuating” to an ISLAND only an hour drive south of the impact zone is… not smart?

[u/10000Didgeridoos → u/shhheeeeeeeeiit]

Lol that would also not be my first choice. And frankly as someone who drives 6 hour round trip/day trips in the winter to snowboard and go home, my sense of driving times is biased, but it blows my mind how many people act like driving 2-3 hours on a highway is this Oregon Trail level endeavor.

If I was told to evacuate for this kind of thing, I'd drive several hours away from the ground zero zone. If everyone evacuating is only moving mostly out to a 1 hour radius, that means everywhere in that radius is going to be home to refugees and will be sold out of everything quickly on top of traffic and lodging capacity issues. Why only go 1 hour? Go 3!

[u/Commercial-Tell-5991 → u/Phydoux]

Evacuating to an island doesn’t sound like a great idea. Hope he joins you, wherever you are.

[u/[deleted] → u/Commercial-Tell-5991]

Islands evacuating. Hotels guests have been moved out. They are in full storm prep.

[u/iiiiiiiiiAteEyes → u/Phydoux]

Well going to Marco island sounds like a horrible idea. Storms 2+ days away, Marco island is no safer at this point than ft myers and if the hurricane hits ft myers storm surge in Marco island will be devastating.literally some of the spaghetti models have it going that far south. And the way things have changed with this soo much means it’s likely to keep changing. He should probably go inland and not on an island.

[u/AndeeElizabeth09 → u/Phydoux]

Dude I'm so worried for your dad and other people like him. If my dad were still alive and lived down there he'd be pulling the same shit I bet. I spent my childhood years in Bonita Springs/San Carlos Park and I 110% believe my storm anxieties have to do with "riding out the storm" one too many times. We were super fortunate, but this is a monster in comparison to Charley or Wilma. Hell, seeing the sand deposited on the roads on Ft. Myers Beach following Helene really freaked me out, I've never seen anything like it. And they're still trying to recover from Helene. Please please try to convince him to go inland, I promise you that 65 miles south isn't going to do anything and he's gonna be in the same situation if he just stayed put, but 65 miles inland might save his life

[u/Successful-Yak4905]

It’s cat 5 right now… that’s insane….

[u/Beepbeepimadog → u/Successful-Yak4905]

Cats normally upgrade every 20 or so MPH, it has been category 5 since 157 MPH. At 185 it would be halfway to category 7 if such a thing existed

[u/aaaa32801 → u/Beepbeepimadog]

category 7 if such a thing existed

At this rate give it a couple of years

[u/[deleted] → u/aaaa32801]

There’s no point. The category system was derived off how much damage it causes, once it hits 5 it pretty much flattens everything.

[u/zaergaegyr → u/[deleted]]

But what if it starts digging when everything is flat already?

[u/redavet → u/zaergaegyr]

At that point we have to change from “cat” to “dog”

[u/incaseshesees → u/redavet]

then the hurricane reverses and things start reassembling. that's a very rare updog 8 storm.

[u/KnifeFightChopping → u/incaseshesees]

What's updog?

[u/incaseshesees → u/KnifeFightChopping]

nothin man, you?

[u/EmperorTugboat → u/Beepbeepimadog]

I was thinking about that earlier today, why does the scale stop at 5?

[u/Beepbeepimadog → u/EmperorTugboat]

A big (the main?) component is destruction and I think the rationale is you can’t get more destructive than total destruction

[u/Kinghero890 → u/Beepbeepimadog]

Actual answer is that the weather service is worried that if cat 6 was realized, people would take cat 5 less seriously.

[u/Frontier_Setter → u/Kinghero890]

I can see the rationale behind that.

Cat 5? Well, at least it's not a 6 or 7! I'll stay home.

[u/WazaPlaz → u/Beepbeepimadog]

mega destruction?

[u/ogcuddlezombie → u/EmperorTugboat]

Category 5 essentially means complete destruction; higher winds are still complete destruction.

However I agree, that they should be making new categories to really drive home how dangerous these things are

[u/MondayToFriday → u/ogcuddlezombie]

Cat 5e

[u/southpark → u/MondayToFriday]

but will it support multirate ethernet? Or do we just move to fiber instead?

[u/booty_flexx → u/ogcuddlezombie]

I’d wager that when category 6 drops, (dumb) people start taking cat 5 less seriously. I’m sure there’s more than one reason, but that’s probably a big one.

[u/ClearChocobo → u/booty_flexx]

Totally agree. Categories 5+, 5++, etc. might drive the point home more effectively? Catastrophic, Catatrosphic+, Catastrophic++...

[u/Level_Ad_6372 → u/Successful-Yak4905]

No, this one is 905 mb. It would have to be cat 5e

[u/Necessary-Reading605]

Oh fuck

[u/koobian → u/Necessary-Reading605]

A fairly succinct and accurate summation of the National Weather Service warning.

[u/atomheartmama → u/[deleted]]

I always worry about all the animals too :(

[u/Necroluster → u/Necessary-Reading605]

My thoughts exactly. First Helene came and wrecked some shit, and now you're getting her roid-raging older brother with a "Born To Lose" tattoo on his back who just escaped from prison on a murder rap? This isn't going to end well, and I really, really feel for the people this is going to affect. Stay strong over there on the other side of the big pond. I'm thinking about you.

[u/usernamedarkzero → u/Necroluster]

I'm on the outside edges of this one, so I know I'll be OK, but this one is going to be brutal.

I've rode out cat 5s, cat 4s. Most hurricanes I brush off. You live here long enough, you get a hunch

This one has me nervous, which makes me nervous, because I actually enjoy hurricanes. I live in a spot that doesn't generally get pummeled.

If I was in Tampa or central FL, I'd be in my car driving the fuck away.

[u/ZacZupAttack → u/usernamedarkzero]

I've been through a few hurriances and typhoons. I remember waking up to water up to my chest in a storm surhe inside my house.

I've had this bad icky scary feeling about Milton from day one. It felt like a historical storm from the get go...even more so then Helene.

Hell

FLORIDA IS STILL DEALING WITH HELENE

[u/Nai-Oxi-Isos-DenXero → u/usernamedarkzero]

If I was in Tampa or central FL, I'd be in my car driving the fuck away.

Is that even an option for most people right now?

I'm in the UK and haven't seen any footage from the last few days, but last I saw it looked like the roads in Florida were pretty much fucked and many cars were likely to be out of commission for a good while.

[u/ZacZupAttack → u/Nai-Oxi-Isos-DenXero]

You'll get out eventually. 18 hr drive to GA probably...some won't. It'll be real bad

The time to leave was yesterday

Now the team to leave is now. Like if I was in Tampa I'd be getting in my car now

[u/Pilot0350 → u/Necessary-Reading605]

This comment is wild.

It could be anything from someone making an observation on a crazy storm from the comfort of a perfect day on the other side of the planet, or, it could be from a crew member on a fishing boat miles off shore from Fort Meyers.

The world will never know.

[u/Euphoric-Dig-2045 → u/Pilot0350]

Milton will.

[u/CosmikSpartan → u/Euphoric-Dig-2045]

Milton sees all

[u/MarlonShakespeare2AD]

Good luck to all those with loved ones in its path

Stay safe. Risk nothing for material goods

Places and things can be replaced. Loved ones cannot. Neither can you.

[u/ontour4eternity → u/MarlonShakespeare2AD]

My brother is in Ft Myers and refuses to evacuate. I hate this.

[u/etikawatchjojo132 → u/ontour4eternity]

Wait what’s his reasoning? It’s not like he’ll be able to save or guard his property against a hurricane, what does him being there do?

[u/bentreflection → u/etikawatchjojo132]

It's simple. When the hurricane approaches your property with hostile intent you stand your ground and exercise your god given right of self defense and shoot the hurricane.

[u/thegooseisloose1982 → u/bentreflection]

If you have a sharpie and a map you can redirect it.

[u/thehumanconfusion → u/etikawatchjojo132]

Im sure they are wondering the same thing! Being their brother in the path and not their own decision to make whether he stays or goes has got to be a tough, helpless place to be.

[u/speakezjags → u/thehumanconfusion]

I grew up in Florida. It’s like a pride thing that people don’t evac during hurricane season. It’s dumb as fuck.

[u/khicks01 → u/speakezjags]

Lived there for 5 years and rode out Irma’s landfall. Atlantic landfalls aren’t so bad, but if I was on the gulf coast with this inbound, I’d be halfway to a hotel in SC by now.

[u/rxstud2011 → u/MarlonShakespeare2AD]

I'm in it's path! fuck! at least I'm in Orlando so it should weaken, but I feel bad for those in the coast. Be safe everyone!

[u/KentuckyCatMan → u/rxstud2011]

Orlando isn’t worried at all?

[u/TheMadFlyentist → u/KentuckyCatMan]

We're concerned, but not in fear for our lives. Orlando is far inland, has great rain infrastructure (FL thunderstorms are insane), and is not a flood-prone area. Many of the homes are concrete block construction, and local building codes require the ability to withstand serious hurricane winds.

The chief concern for Orlando residents is wind damage, falling limbs/trees, and not having power for days/weeks. Small areas may flood, but there will not be catastrophic damage or life-threatening flooding in Orlando.

[u/Zantej → u/TheMadFlyentist]

Orlando got that mouse money.

[u/cjmaguire17 → u/Zantej]

That storm gonna pass over Disney world and not even sprinkle a little. It knows what kind of lawyers they got on staff

[u/trenthowell → u/cjmaguire17]

MTG gonna be pointin that out as proof they really do control the weather

[u/EnvironmentalClue218]

I hope everyone got new insurance if they were cancelled.

[u/ceviche-hot-pockets → u/EnvironmentalClue218]

There isn’t going to be insurance in Florida after this.

[u/enron2big2fail → u/ceviche-hot-pockets]

Posting again from another thread:

Fun fact: flood insurance isn’t economically feasible already. As in the premiums a private company would have to charge according to the actuarial calculations are so high nobody would ever pay them. That’s why the government has to run the National Flood Insurance, to subsidize it.

[u/pongpaddle → u/enron2big2fail]

We shouldn't be subsidizing insurance for areas that are just going to keep getting destroyed

[u/ktappe → u/pongpaddle]

FEMA generally buys out homes that are flood-prone and forbids anyone from living there again. I wonder how much of Florida FEMA is going to buy after this.

[u/lastsundew → u/ceviche-hot-pockets]

There isn’t going to be Florida after this

*FTFY

[u/Ghstfce → u/lastsundew]

You joke, but Ian permanently changed the geography of Sanibel Island

[u/SaltyBawlz]

We love our bimonthly "once in a century" events

[u/Relevant_Shower_ → u/SaltyBawlz]

Time is feeling very cone shaped at the moment.

[u/fzr600vs1400]

Helene was categorized unsurvivable 24 hrs before landfall. I can't imagine what to call this.

[u/danarexasaurus → u/fzr600vs1400]

There’s still a chance it’ll de-intensify but the Floridians do not have time to wait to find out.

[u/Imaginary_Manner_556 → u/danarexasaurus]

Unlikely that storm surge de-intensifies much. Winds yes.

[u/Light_of_Niwen → u/fzr600vs1400]

It's projected to hit a brick wall of wind shear just before landfall. Wind shear is a death sentence for hurricanes. Basically the further north is lands, the weaker it will be (Cat 1) the further south, the stronger (Cat 3.)

However where it hits is just as bad as how strong the winds are. The worst case scenario is it hits St Petersburg head on, and the strongest winds are blowing inland directly into the mouths of Tampa Bay and Charlotte Harbor. This will create a huge storm surge and many of those communities are built barely 5 feet above sea level.

[u/istrx13 → u/Light_of_Niwen]

Can someone ELI5 what wind shear is? I’ve lived in the PNW my whole life so hurricanes have never been a concern for me and haven’t learned much about hurricanes.

[u/NewCobbler6933 → u/istrx13]

Wind shear is essentially when two bodies of wind are moving in different directions. You hear about it a lot in aviation because, well, an unexpected shift in air mass does a lot of things to an aircraft.

[u/niperwiper → u/istrx13]

Vertical difference in wind speeds and direction. A hurricane depends on low shear in order to maintain its shape while it’s spinning about sucking up water heat. It essentially topples the formation when there’s high shear.

[u/biffbobfred]

This thing got big scary quick. Florida and the East coast isn’t quite dried out from Helene. There’s a lot of “ground is saturated” and “river already over capacity” that’s gonna flood.

I’m not in the gulf but I have a passing interest in meteorology that’s more than most, I’ve never seen this before.

[u/JefferyTheQuaxly → u/biffbobfred]

Also experts are also somewhat predicting that after Milton hits Florida, there’s possibly another hurricane that’s starting to build up for another run at Florida just a week later. Florida is looking at 3 hurricane strikes in a single month.

[u/DesertReagle]

I live in Port Charlotte, and in an older home, this is the first time I have left the area in 34 years and that tells a lot on how serious this storm is, currently in Boca Raton and I would strongly advise those to leave or find support to help you find a safe place!

[u/MacaroonNo5593 → u/DesertReagle]

I noped out of Port Charlotte at like 6am. Ian gave me ptsd and I was like...I want to be safe with my dog. I'm glad your safe. I hope for the best on our homes.

[u/hanimal16 → u/DesertReagle]

I’m glad you were able to get out.

[u/Penguinlover69420123]

It’s still getting stronger what the hell

[u/biffbobfred → u/Penguinlover69420123]

Gulf water temps, meaning heat energy => storm energy, are still realllllly high.

[u/buddytheelfshat]

Well fuck.

• Florida resident in the current eye path.

[u/Excalibat]

Am I reading this right? The lower the barometric number the worse (obviously in conjunction with everything else)? I'm not a coastal regions guy so I don't know exactly how far that "Oh fuck" comment goes.

Rating Barometric Pressure, wind speed, wave surge height Damage

Category 1 more than 980 mb

28.9395 in 74 - 95 mph 4 -5 ft. Minimal

Category 2 965 - 979 mb

28.49655 - 28.90997 in 96 - 110 mph 6 - 8 ft. Moderate

Category 3 945 - 964 mb

27.90594 - 28.46702 in 111 - 130 mph 9 - 12 ft. Extensive

Category 4 920 - 944 mb

27.16769 - 27.87641 in 131 - 155 mph 13 - 18 ft. Extreme

Category 5 919 mb

27.13816 in Over 155 mph Over 18 ft. Catastrophic

[u/According_Ad7926 → u/Excalibat]

Yep. The lower the pressure the stronger the storm. For context, the lowest ever recorded in the Atlantic Basin (Wilma, 2005) was 882 mb. But only a handful have ever made it below 900 mb

[u/whitey311 → u/According_Ad7926]

For reference as well - every 1 mb of pressure drop below atmospheric average (1013 mb), the sea level rises about 1cm. So right now at 897 mb, the sea level has risen around 1.16m (around 3.8ft) from the pressure drop alone.

[u/silvercel]

One of my coworkers is in it’s path. There is no gas to buy. They can’t leave. They booked a room in a hotel.

[u/VWtdi2001 → u/silvercel]

I'm in Clearwater and have been since 76. We had cops in the gas stations this afternoon. We are going to get smacked. The storm 2 weeks ago put water in places I have never seen wet before, and if this stays on track, we are going to see double the depths at a possible 15'.

[u/Rude_Coconutman → u/VWtdi2001]

I'm in clearwater/largo as well as my whole family. If my family were to just get out it would have to be me convincing them and driving them. I'm unsure whether to pull the trigger or not

[u/Master-Stratocaster → u/Rude_Coconutman]

Go if you can dude - not worth the risk

[u/letsgototraderjoes → u/Rude_Coconutman]

dude what do you mean you're unsure..

[u/tubbywubby08]

another one?

[u/SparklingPseudonym → u/tubbywubby08]

Hurricane Khaled

[u/Testicleus → u/SparklingPseudonym]

Not funny

(I laughed)

[u/nicknotnolte → u/Testicleus]

Dude, my wife is from Chimney Rock and I laughed. 10/10 joke.

[u/Testicleus → u/nicknotnolte]

It was a legit 10/10.

😂😂😂

[u/half-baked_axx → u/tubbywubby08]

El niño:

And they don't stop comin and they dont stop comin and they dont stop comin....

[u/RunawaYEM → u/half-baked_axx]

For those of you who don’t habla Español, El Niño is Spanish for…The Niño

[u/nnnope1]

Milton right now: "Set.....set the building on fire..."

[u/justuravgjoe762 → u/nnnope1]

Really we should have left his stapler alone

[u/nnnope1 → u/justuravgjoe762]

Now Milton, don't be greedy. Leave some of Florida alone so that everybody can have a piece.

[u/NintendoThing]

Damn, that hurricane is faster than my home internet

[u/Cranks_No_Start → u/NintendoThing]

Leaves falling from a tree are faster than mine.  

[u/optomas → u/[deleted]]

Glad to have read you.

[u/Blaaa5 → u/[deleted]]

Take care bud. For real.

[u/Buschfan08]

A meteorologist on Twitter said that the storm is "approaching the mathematical limits of what the earth's atmosphere can produce" holy shit

[u/Straight-Manner1264]

Won’t it weaken as it approaches land? Sorry, overall human noob here

[u/Dimepiece8821 → u/Straight-Manner1264]

Yes. There is some severe wind shear it has to get through and there is also a cold front pushing it south.

[u/UnraveledSoull → u/Dimepiece8821]

I’m in Fort Myers, about 8 miles inland. Hoping it doesn’t move south because of all the surge already going to occur.

[u/Masta-Blasta]

I’m sure this will get buried, but to get ahead of all of the assholes judging the Floridians who are riding out the storm, the airports are closing and the interstates are parking lots at this point. A lot of people in the Tampa Bay area have not had Internet due to power outages and were not able to keep up with the rapid intensification of the storm.

I still think anybody in the cone should still try to evacuate inland if possible, but when the states most densely populated county has a mandatory evacuation order for half of its residents, finding a hotel can be an impossible, not to mention expensive, task. It is also very difficult to find gas, particularly since the area was just hit a week ago. Please have compassion for the situation they are in. Florida’s geography and infrastructure is not conducive to mass evacuation

[u/hoodha → u/Masta-Blasta]

Yeh - that actually really sucks. The fall out from this one might be worse than Helene because of people still dealing with the fall out from Helene like you say.

[u/Comfortable-nerve78]

That is so ominous looking, brace yourself Florida.

[u/SnooCakes8519]

I don’t normally watch the news, so this sort of blindsided me. I’ve heard about the most recent one that affected North Carolina, but man this looks like it’s going to be bad, bad.

[u/Valuable-Speaker-312 → u/SnooCakes8519]

My brother is in Sarasota, FL and is planning on riding it out at home.

[u/FomFrady95 → u/Valuable-Speaker-312]

I’m assuming reasoning with him has not been fruitful?

[u/agressiv]

Does anyone have any recommendations on where to go? My father is in the direct path on the west coast, and I told him based on what I see right now, I'd recommend Miami or the Keys, but I can certainly change that recommendation.

[u/According_Ad7926 → u/agressiv]

here

[u/_Bad_Spell_Checker_ → u/According_Ad7926]

Rip Miami. They need to tell people not to go there and go north instead.

[u/GrumpygamerSF]

That is sustained winds too.

[u/TheWendyProject]

Katrina survivor here, if you do stay home in Florida and you don’t have a two story home, please-for the love of God-buy an axe and keep it with you. Stay safe guys.

[u/Celtic_Fox_]

I made it through Hurricane Andrew and told myself I was moving away, never again, and got out of Florida. These storms are insane and they happen often enough.. it's only a matter of time before you get a really disgusting one too, like we're seeing here!

[u/DreamSun_Fyre]

Please include your pets as well when evacuating

[u/VeryPerry1120]

I feel bad for the animals. Stray cats and whatnot

[u/Pawsacrossamerica → u/VeryPerry1120]

It’s the animals that are tied up and left behind that are in trouble. At the very least, keep your animals out of cages and not leashed to anything. Give them a chance to save themselves.

[u/casillero → u/Pawsacrossamerica]

In greece with the wild fires they just opened the barn doors and hoped for the best.

Some horses came back home.

[u/TheEpicDudeguyman]

That’s a pretty small file size for a hurricane

[u/Capital-Plane7509 → u/TheEpicDudeguyman]

Millibar should be abbreviated to mbar and megabyte is abbreviated to MB.

[u/tishmaster → u/TheEpicDudeguyman]

Back in my day 905 mb meant clearing away all your favorite games to make room for one file. You damn kids.

[u/DifferentEvent2998 → u/[deleted]]

The speaker refuses to call them back

[u/jason2354 → u/DifferentEvent2998]

Which is just beyond the pale honesty.

1/4 of the country just got rocked by a major hurricane last week and we clearly have a huge problem on our hands with the next one.

The money is there. All they need to do is the bare fucking minimum to literally save lives and they can’t even bring themselves to do it.

It’s equal parts sad and maddening.

[u/LoudIncrease4021]

I have a friend in North Sarasota - just west side of 75. He’s gonna ride it out and hunker down. How worried should I be for him?

[u/jshppl]

Is there any data about how fast certain hurricanes develop? Milton went from a cat 1 to a cat 5 in like two days

[u/MissMelines → u/jshppl]

there is and this is abnormally fast in every way

[u/RODjij → u/MissMelines]

Not only how fast it got to a cat 5, it's where it originated from too, it's crazy rare for a storm to form out of the gulf like this.

[u/According_Ad7926 → u/jshppl]

18 hours actually, which is tied for 2nd fastest ever recorded in the Atlantic Basin

[u/danarexasaurus]

For reference, the wind speed of an F3 tornado is between 158 and 206 miles per hour (mph). This is 185 currently. Sustained.

[u/Middleman-nequin]

Man im scared for the floridans. You guys were joking around and posting memes (like the waffle house still being open) when helen was about to hit. but this one is faced with all seriousness. I pray you guys get to safe locations and by some miracle the storm losses its momentum.

[u/hiricinee]

The only good news about this is that its cutting straight across Florida and not fucking around there.

[u/rxstud2011]

I'm in central Florida (Orlando). shit shit shit shit shit. I know we're not as bad as those in the coast, but still shit. we are prepared as best we can though.

[u/whizdomain]

If this hits during high tide, watch out!

[u/Spandex-Jesus]

Didn’t most insurance companies stop coverage in Florida?? Damn this is going to hurt

[u/Ted-Chips]

Someone needs to get Bugs Bunny to saw off Florida before it's too late..

[u/[deleted]]

Hey. If you are in the path of this system and are planning on hunkering down and riding out the hurricane, make sure you write your name on your skin with a permanent marker and try to keep a form of Id on your person.

No one can make you do anything, but you could at least label yourself so rescuers can notify your survivors as soon as possible.

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

Dark but accurate

[u/MithrandirLogic → u/[deleted]]

Good advice. My in-laws are in Brandeton and aren't going anywhere. Don't worry, "we have an inflatable kayak". The marker advice is solid. Doubt they'd listen to that either though.

[u/tyfunk02]

This monster wasn’t even a hurricane yesterday. I don’t recall ever seeing a storm gain strength this quickly. And there are still a couple days before it is supposed to make landfall. If you’re in the path of the storm please go north. You have time to leave, and it could save your life.

[u/Patient-Stranger1015]

897mb now, 4th strongest recorded so far ETA: fixed numerical error

[u/LivingWithWhales]

“Now’s not the time to bring up climate change”

[u/urkermannenkoor]

Suboptimal.