Evacuations are being ordered in many Florida counties as Hurricane Milton continues to barge toward the peninsula, the Florida Division of Emergency Management said. The agency has also advised, “You only need to evacuate tens of miles, not hundreds!” and said shelters are open across the state.
Charlotte County: Evacuations have been ordered for residents in the areas known as Red Zone-A and Orange Zone-B – generally those on the water along the Gulf, Charlotte Harbor and the Myakka and Peace rivers, and immediately inland, a county map shows.
Citrus County: Beginning at 8 a.m. Tuesday, residents in any structure incapable of withstanding 110 mph winds will be under a mandatory evacuation order, the sheriff’s office said. That includes campers, tents, mobile homes and manufactured homes.
Collier County: The cities of Naples, Marco Island and Everglades City as well as the communities of Goodland and Chokoloskee are under voluntary precautionary evacuation notices, which affect zones A and B, according to the county website. A mandatory evacuation order for zones A and B is set to begin at 6 a.m. Tuesday.
Glades County: A voluntary evacuation order will begin Tuesday at 1 p.m. for residents in mobile homes, RVs and low-lying areas.
Hernando County: Mandatory evacuations have been issued starting on Tuesday at 8 a.m. for all areas west of US Highway 19, which includes Zones A, B and C — as well as residents living in coastal and low-lying areas and manufactured homes across the county.
Hillsborough County: A mandatory evacuation order began at 2:30 p.m. Monday for all residents in Zones A and B, according to the county, which encompasses the city of Tampa. The orders also apply to residents in mobile and manufactured homes.
Lee County: Residents in Zones A and B are under evacuation orders that went into effect at noon Monday, officials said. The residents of Sanibel, on a barrier island along Florida’s west coast, must be off the island by 10 p.m. Tuesday as first responders will likely have to discontinue service when severe winds kick in, officials said Monday.
Manatee County: Evacuation orders went into effect at 2 p.m. Monday for residents in zones known as Level A, Level B and Level C. The evacuation order also includes people who live in mobile homes or RVs.
Miami-Dade County: Officials have asked medically vulnerable people and residents of mobile home parks to evacuate, Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said Monday. “We are standing up evacuation centers and also working with our hospitals for the medically vulnerable,” she said.
Okeechobee County: A voluntary evacuation order will go into effect for residents in low-lying areas and mobile homes on Tuesday at 5 p.m.
Pasco County: A mandatory evacuation order is in effect for residents in Zones A, B and C as well as everyone in manufactured homes, mobile homes, RVs and residents in low-lying, flood-prone areas. Earlier, the county said a voluntary evacuation order is in effect for people with a designated “Special Needs Resident” and anyone who “would be vulnerable in the event of a power loss.”
Pinellas County: The county has issued an immediate mandatory evacuation order for residents in Zones A, B, and C and all mobile homes countywide. Access to barrier islands will be limited to residents, business owners and employees between 7 p.m. Monday and 7 p.m. Tuesday so people can prep homes and businesses. A mandatory evacuation order went into effect Sunday for residential health care facilities in Zones A, B and C.
Sarasota County: Residents in Levels A and B are being directed to evacuate, while those in Level C “should be prepared” to do so if Milton intensifies. Residents planning to leave the area should have done so Monday, the county said. “If you wait, you will get stuck in traffic.”
Volusia County: As of Wednesday at 8 a.m., an evacuation order will be in effect for areas east of the Intracoastal Waterway, people in manufactured and mobile homes, individuals in low-lying or flood-prone areas, according to County Manager George Recktenwald. Camp sites and RV parks are also ordered to evacuate. “We’re also coordinating with our cities to evacuate properties that are still deemed vulnerable from previous storm events,” he said.