Milton

Loper

WKR
Joined
Jul 1, 2020
Messages
1,148
As a native Floridian I’ve seen and been through dozens of hurricanes and bad storms. I don’t get rattled or worried about them as they are just a part of living here and you deal with them.

However, this hurricane, Milton, that is out in the Gulf is a massive Category 5. In addition to that it is headed right for a major metro area, Tampa Bay. This area, and cities north and south of there just got an indirect hit from Helene causing major flooding. Many residents have discarded their ruined furniture, possessions, sheetrock, etc. from the flooding and it now sits on the curb of the street, waiting to be picked uo by county trash or FEMA. There are still boats strewn across people’s front yards from Helene two weeks ago. At this point there is little to no chance these items get taken off the streets before the hurricane makes landfall on Wednesday. These items are going to be hurled through the air at 150+ mph into houses, cars, storefronts etc. This debris also has the potential to block roads for anyone trying to evacuate last minute, which could result in stranded motorists on roads that could flood.

Tampa hasn’t had a direct hit from a major hurricane in a really, really long time (somebody fact check me on the date). Even during regular storms south Tampa floods, so with a direct hit from a major Cat 5, there could be some significant flooding.

Once it rolls through Tampa it is projected to head right through Orlando, another major metro area.

Between the super intense winds, the storm surge, the recent flooding and debris, and the major cities it is about to rip through, this has the recipe to be catastrophic.

Like I said, I really don’t get worried about hurricanes, but this one has me concerned. I think this is the big one that could be an absolute disaster. I hope I’m wrong.
 

willtim

WKR
Joined
Oct 14, 2020
Messages
402
Certainly praying for y'all. We took a hit from the east side of Helene. Got power back Saturday night.
 

Jacack

WKR
Joined
Apr 27, 2018
Messages
653
Location
Florida
Yes it's going to bad for a large portion of Florida. I am in swfl and while we probably won't get the wind destruction the surge will certainly be major.

My real concern is how wet it is. There will be a unreal amout of trees down taking powerlines with them.

I ran my boat from naples to key west yesterday to hide it down there and man it was a beating getting down. I probably won't have a dock and lift to return to when it's over.

Driving back north last night the traffic from people heading south on 75 towards Miami was bumper to bumper for huge portions and I imagine today will be worse.

I feel for the people from Tampa area. They look to get the brunt of it
 

Rotnguns

WKR
Joined
Apr 11, 2020
Messages
430
Location
Southwest Idaho
As a native Floridian I’ve seen and been through dozens of hurricanes and bad storms. I don’t get rattled or worried about them as they are just a part of living here and you deal with them.

However, this hurricane, Milton, that is out in the Gulf is a massive Category 5. In addition to that it is headed right for a major metro area, Tampa Bay. This area, and cities north and south of there just got an indirect hit from Helene causing major flooding. Many residents have discarded their ruined furniture, possessions, sheetrock, etc. from the flooding and it now sits on the curb of the street, waiting to be picked uo by county trash or FEMA. There are still boats strewn across people’s front yards from Helene two weeks ago. At this point there is little to no chance these items get taken off the streets before the hurricane makes landfall on Wednesday. These items are going to be hurled through the air at 150+ mph into houses, cars, storefronts etc. This debris also has the potential to block roads for anyone trying to evacuate last minute, which could result in stranded motorists on roads that could flood.

Tampa hasn’t had a direct hit from a major hurricane in a really, really long time (somebody fact check me on the date). Even during regular storms south Tampa floods, so with a direct hit from a major Cat 5, there could be some significant flooding.

Once it rolls through Tampa it is projected to head right through Orlando, another major metro area.

Between the super intense winds, the storm surge, the recent flooding and debris, and the major cities it is about to rip through, this has the recipe to be catastrophic.

Like I said, I really don’t get worried about hurricanes, but this one has me concerned. I think this is the big one that could be an absolute disaster. I hope I’m wrong.
Wow, you folks are getting hammered by these hurricanes - first Helene and then this one. Prayers for you and your family and all the other folks down there to get through this storm safely.
 

ScottP76

FNG
Joined
Jun 9, 2024
Messages
38
Once it rolls through Tampa it is projected to head right through Orlando, another major metro area.

Between the super intense winds, the storm surge, the recent flooding and debris, and the major cities it is about to rip through, this has the recipe to be catastrophic.
They have no idea where the damn thing is going. Only thing they can forecast correctly is somewhere between Tampa and North Port is going to be really ******! Hopefully they are correct that it will drop down to a Cat 3 before it hits.
Lot’s of “firsts” this hurricane season. It can’t end fast enough!
 

98XJRC

WKR
Joined
Mar 30, 2022
Messages
305
My parents live outside of Sarasota area and are thankfully in land far enough to avoid the flooding. Unfortunately my father who works for a custom home builder on primarily water front properties in the area is anticipating an immense amount of loss. They are already busy and have already begun to turn away work after the devastation from Helene. The owner of the company is anticipating total loss of his property and he's not even on any of the barrier islands or water front.

The Sarasota area has taken a beating this year and most of the barrier islands will be a shell of themselves by the time this storm season is finished unfortunately. While most of the news focused on the destruction of Helene in NC and TN the Florida treasure cost got hit hard and sustained a significant amount of damage off of storm surge alone. Unfortunately many of the areas that already experience Helene's storm surge are bracing for more and that's without the protective dunes in place due to being wiped out by Helene. While long forgotten Hurricane Debby brought flooding to the area and it's only continuing to happen for the folks on the west coast of Florida.
 
OP
L

Loper

WKR
Joined
Jul 1, 2020
Messages
1,148
Yes it's going to bad for a large portion of Florida. I am in swfl and while we probably won't get the wind destruction the surge will certainly be major.

My real concern is how wet it is. There will be a unreal amout of trees down taking powerlines with them.

I ran my boat from naples to key west yesterday to hide it down there and man it was a beating getting down. I probably won't have a dock and lift to return to when it's over.

Driving back north last night the traffic from people heading south on 75 towards Miami was bumper to bumper for huge portions and I imagine today will be worse.

I feel for the people from Tampa area. They look to get the brunt of it
Smart move to take your boat down there. Hopefully, your dock is still there after the storm.

There’s a lot of people evacuating with with this storm which is good. Hopefully everyone makes it to where they need to go and motorists don’t get stranded on the roads or interstates. Seems many gas stations have run out of fuel or are projected to run out.
 
OP
L

Loper

WKR
Joined
Jul 1, 2020
Messages
1,148
I'm sure many of you have seen this by now:
Wow!

One good thing that came from Helene is that people’s eyes were opened to the destruction hurricanes can bring. Sometimes Floridians can shuck aside the warnings from meteorologists, media, or local officials, but Milton is not one you want to do that with. It is good that people are evacuating from some of the coastal areas.
 
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307

WKR
Joined
Jun 18, 2014
Messages
1,952
Location
Cheyenne
I'm interested in what this is going to do economically to the area, in the short and long terms. Home insurance is already a disaster in Florida from what little I know and these storms are likely to make that much, much worse, even though they won't cover claims from flooding/storm surge.

How can people rebuild without insurance? Should they? Is it all FEMA $? Are hurricanes getting stronger so that this is likely to be a continuing and more frequent occurrence?

On the Texas coast, almost all homes are build on stilts, 10+ feet off of the ground. Why don't I see this in Florida?

My wife and I had eyes on buying a second home in Florida. I think recent devastating events/storms have us reconsidering.

Good luck to all in harms way. Hopefully you're prepared as much as you can be and will get through this in the best way possible.
 

maxx075

WKR
Joined
Feb 9, 2024
Messages
390
Location
UT/WV
I'm interested in what this is going to do economically to the area, in the short and long terms. Home insurance is already a disaster in Florida from what little I know and these storms are likely to make that much, much worse, even though they won't cover claims from flooding/storm surge.

How can people rebuild without insurance? Should they? Is it all FEMA $? Are hurricanes getting stronger so that this is likely to be a continuing and more frequent occurrence?

On the Texas coast, almost all homes are build on stilts, 10+ feet off of the ground. Why don't I see this in Florida?

My wife and I had eyes on buying a second home in Florida. I think recent devastating events/storms have us reconsidering.

Good luck to all in harms way. Hopefully you're prepared as much as you can be and will get through this in the best way possible.
I moved from FL to UT last year, but I'm trying to make the moves to get back to FL soon


Insurance (home and auto) is an absolute joke in FL. Some cases where you're better off not even having it.
 

TimberRunner

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Aug 6, 2024
Messages
104
We have a place on siesta key that was built in the 60's. Took on 4 feet of water during Helene. I will be shocked if it's still standing Thursday morning.
 

98XJRC

WKR
Joined
Mar 30, 2022
Messages
305
@TimberRunner - sorry to hear that and hoping for the best for you guys

@307 - The newer homes being built along the shore line and in flood zones are now being built via piers with the ground level floor typically being garage/ storage. The unfortunate part is all of the homes such as TimberRunner’s that have been purchased or pass down through families for generations. Those are the people that will not have the funds to rebuild their property. You see it already with many of the older properties on the outer islands being bought for high money only to be torn down and a new place built designed to withstand the storms.
 
OP
L

Loper

WKR
Joined
Jul 1, 2020
Messages
1,148
I'm interested in what this is going to do economically to the area, in the short and long terms. Home insurance is already a disaster in Florida from what little I know and these storms are likely to make that much, much worse, even though they won't cover claims from flooding/storm surge.

How can people rebuild without insurance? Should they? Is it all FEMA $? Are hurricanes getting stronger so that this is likely to be a continuing and more frequent occurrence?

On the Texas coast, almost all homes are build on stilts, 10+ feet off of the ground. Why don't I see this in Florida?

My wife and I had eyes on buying a second home in Florida. I think recent devastating events/storms have us reconsidering.

Good luck to all in harms way. Hopefully you're prepared as much as you can be and will get through this in the best way possible

Yes insurance is out of hand, but I don’t entirely blame the Insirance companies, if I ran an insurance business, I’d pull out of the state. It’s not worth dealing with the headache of routine claims from hurricanes every other year. The question isn’t when is it going to stop, but rather where is it going to hit next and how hard. Those insurance companies that have stayed in the state have to cover their losses and there isn’t much if any competition to compete with rates.

It’s probably very difficult for many to rebuild without insurance. However, as long as people have insurance, they are going to rely on it. They will just keep repairing their homes rather than rebuild to stricter building codes. I personally don’t think homes should be built as close to the water as many are. My thoughts are if you want insurance, and are within a flood plane or within “X” distance from the water your house has to be up to the latest building code.

It was interesting, last summer I went up to Cape San Blas towards the panhandle and that area was hit by Hurricane Michael in 2018. It is a small beach town that has been completely rebuilt due to being wiped out by the storm. Everything is new and built on stilts, which you don’t see much in other parts of the state, as many are older communities and building codes didn’t require it. In my opinion all coastal communities should be on stilts.

I love Florida but it’s horrible what is happening to the state with so much development. Urban sprawl is significant and developers just keep purchasing and building on raw land instead of building up. I would not be disappointed if people left the state due to affordability and fear of storms. Hopefully it would greatly reduce sprawl and destroying our forests, pastures, and wetlands.

Unfortunately, I don’t think this is going to happen unless people either can’t get insurance or it is cost prohibitive and people are forced to rebuild up to the latest building codes.
 
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OP
L

Loper

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Joined
Jul 1, 2020
Messages
1,148
We have a place on siesta key that was built in the 60's. Took on 4 feet of water during Helene. I will be shocked if it's still standing Thursday morning.
Sorry to hear that. That sucks. I have family members that have a similar place a little further north of you. They aren’t there now, but fully anticipate it not being there when they return.
 
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