TAMPA, Fla. – Residents in the Tampa area have been packing up and leaving Hillsborough County as powerful Hurricane Milton continues to head their way.
There are 11 Florida counties under a mandatory evacuation, which has led to a 150% increase in traffic as many leave areas anticipated to be impacted by the storm.
On Tuesday morning, there was bumper-to-bumper traffic on Interstate 75 as people were trying to head to safety.
“Helene was a wakeup call,” said Tampa Mayor Jane Castor. “This is literally catastrophic. I can say without any dramatization whatsoever, if you choose to stay in one of those evacuation areas, you’re gonna die.”
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The sobering message comes as this shapes up to be one of the largest evacuations of the west coast of Florida.
At the University of South Florida, one staffer prepared to transport at least 300 students to a Hillsborough shelter.
“I’m a little nervous because this is my first time in a shelter for anything, specifically a hurricane shelter,” said USF student Nick Nelson.
Hajani Bulli, from Jamaica, is among the students riding out the storm.
“I’ve never been, like, directly hit by a hurricane in my lifetime, so it’s quite the experience,” he said. “I am an international student, so I have no idea what’s going on. I’m glad they at least thought of their students.”
Students will remain at the shelter until at least Thursday.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that toll fees have been suspended in evacuated areas.