USA: Biden cancels trip to Germany and Angola to oversee hurricane management

Published by Protothema on Tue, 10/08/2024 - 17:07

President Joe Biden has postponed his upcoming trip to Germany and Angola to oversee preparations for Hurricane Milton and the relief efforts following Hurricane Elin, the White House announced today.

“Given the projected path and strength of Hurricane Milton, Biden is postponing his upcoming trip to Germany and Angola in order to supervise the preparations and the response of authorities to Hurricane Milton, in addition to the ongoing response to the impacts of Hurricane Elin in the Southeastern United States,” the U.S. presidency stated.

Alert in Florida for approaching Hurricane Milton

Florida is on high alert as it is expected to face extreme weather conditions for the second time in a few weeks. Specifically, Hurricane Milton is estimated to arrive on Wednesday evening (local time), while the state continues to recover from another hurricane, Ellen, which caused widespread devastation and left more than 230 dead, striking the Big Bend area less than two weeks ago.

On Monday, Milton quickly intensified to a Category 5 hurricane, prompting warnings for storms and water levels exceeding those of Ellen along the Tampa coast. As part of the preparations, extensive evacuation orders were issued along the coast, and approximately 15 million people are under flood watch throughout the Florida peninsula.

Areas north of where Milton is expected to make landfall may face over a meter of rain, while around 11 million people are also at risk from tropical tornadoes.

Meanwhile, residents of Tampa have already begun evacuating the area since yesterday, while in other areas, such as St. Petersburg, supermarket shelves have been emptied of essentials.

At the same time, crews in Florida are still working around the clock to remove the debris left by Ellen, with Governor Ron DeSantis stating that up to 4,000 National Guard personnel have been deployed to bolster these efforts.

Milton’s strength has weakened but remains dangerous

Milton weakened to Category 4 as it approached Florida early Tuesday, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. Records showed winds reaching up to 250 km/h, located 85 miles northeast of Progreso, Mexico. The storm was moving east-northeast and was about 560 miles southwest of Tampa.

NBC News meteorologists estimated that the storm could weaken again to Category 3 before reaching Florida’s west coast on Wednesday.

Tampa has not been hit by a major hurricane since 1921

Based on available data, Milton is evolving into one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes ever recorded, and remarkably in a short time, having developed from “Tropical Depression 14” to a Category 5 hurricane in less than three days, according to NBC News.

The Tampa Bay area has not been directly hit by a major hurricane since 1921, and authorities are already concerned about the consequences. President Joe Biden approved the declaration of a state of emergency for Florida, and U.S. Congresswoman Kathy Castor stated that 7,000 federal employees have been mobilized to assist in one of the largest mobilizations of federal personnel in history, the Associated Press reported.

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