Categories:

Florida Braces for Category 4 Hurricane Milton: Residents Face Difficult Choice

Bradenton grandparents divided on evacuation as traffic jams plague state after recent devastation
Byline photo of Phoenix Egeler
Byline photo of Cian Bosslet
Phoenix Egeler and Cian Bosslet | October 9, 2024
For protection, families like Mason Molitor's grandfather are putting up shutters and preparing for what's to come.
For protection, families like Mason Molitor’s grandfather are putting up shutters and preparing for what’s to come.
Submitted by Mason Molitor

Florida is facing an upcoming historic hurricane, possibly reaching winds of 200 mph, a category 4.

In the past few weeks, Florida has been hit with devastation. Hurricane Helene had swept by the surrounding areas, destroying and taking over 230 lives with it only a couple weeks ago.

With Hurricane Milton, it’s a shock to the residents of Florida. Some Liberty students, like Wesley Bartlow (10), have family members in the hurricane’s path. Patty and Paul Burman, Bartlow’s grandparents, live in Bradenton, and are not planning on leaving.

An artist’s depiction of Hurricane Milton’s approach on the US. (Avery Bowen)

“I originally planned on leaving immediately,” Patty said in a phone interview Tuesday. “Paul is not in any hurry to go, due to the 20 hours of backed up traffic.”

Concerned about her safety and the potential for devastation, Patty was eager to evacuate to a safer location. Paul, on the other hand, was more hesitant to leave due to traffic and thought it would be best to wait it out.

Many people wanted to leave, afraid for their safety, resulting in a 20-hour traffic back up. Even though there have been such terrible advancements with hurricane Milton, Bartlow’s grandparents continue to stay sheltered in.

Unfortunately, many people in Florida don’t have the choice like the Burmans. They simply don’t have the money to evacuate and have to stay in their home, hoping to protect their belongings.

In most cases of people staying at their home in Florida, they are taking the protective measures needed. Many people have begun to set up shutters or barricades on their windows and doors due to the incoming hurricane.

Mason Molitor (11) also has grandparents in the town of Parrish, which is located approximately 40 minutes from Tampa. They decided to evacuate their home on Tuesday and stay at a hotel.

Earlier in the week, they were still contemplating if they should leave. They are not in an evacuation zone but in a power outage zone. They were also concerned hearing about 20 hours of backed up traffic.

Protection is a need in a hurricane and a way to do that is to place shutters on all windows to ensure safety for the inside and outside. (Submitted by Mason Molitor)

They gathered some non-perishable food (pre-packed containers), ice packs, etc.

Some people are able to evacuate safely though, like Eva Kaminski. Kaminski is going to college at the University of Central Florida. She had to leave due to Milton being a category 4 in the area she was staying at. Kaminski has some advice for people who are staying in Florida and may not be able to leave.

“Get flashlights, non-perishable foods, fill up your gas tank, and put shutters over the window,” Kaminski said.

 

View Story Comments
Print this Story
About the Contributors
Phoenix Egeler
Phoenix Egeler, Assistant Online Editor
Phoenix Egeler is a senior, and the assistant online editor for LHSToday.org who specializes in video editing. They also help with the video editing of the online news class, enjoying the freedom of editing. They will be going to college, undecided, to major in journalism and minor in some kind of criminology class, hoping to become an investigative journalist. She is in their fourth year of publications, having taken three years of online news. In their free time you can probably find them doing graphic design, video editing, or writing. They are a horror movie fan ranging from “Scream” to “Return of the Living Dead,” as well as a metal music fan. 
Cian Bosslet
Cian Bosslet, Reporter
Cian Bosslet is a junior in high school, this is his first time taking intro to journalism. Cian has just quit his job at Jack in the Box and is unemployed. He plans to apply to anywhere with ice cream, flexible hours, and a positive work environment. Cian likes to hangout with friends, read a little, and go out on walks. He's unsure of the college he wants to attend but plans on going to a few colleges to see.
Avery Bowen
Avery Bowen, Graphic Design Editor
Avery Bowen is a senior and this is their second year in publications. She is also involved in drama club, working as a crew head for set, and Earth Club as the social media manager. Outside of school, Avery can usually be found quietly drawing in their room or taking a nap. When not hanging out in her room, Avery is outside in nature walking along her backyard creek and fishing. After high school they plan on studying wildlife biology at an out-of-state college.