Fort Myers Beach issues evacuation order

A mandatory evacuation of Fort Myers Beach took effect Monday following an order a day earlier by Town of Fort Myers Beach Manager Andy Hyatt as Hurricane Milton threatened to hit the island with as much as 12 feet of storm surge and Category 4 winds of 140 miles per hour or more.

By Monday morning. Milton had grown into a Category 5 storm as Lee County officials began ordering evacuations of low-lying areas around Fort Myers Beach, Sanibel, Cape Coral, Pine Island, Bonita Beach and other vulnerable locations for Tuesday evening when the winds are expected to begin ramping up.

Hurricane Milton is expected to hit the Gulf Coast Wednesday morning, with a direct hit being projected to possibly hit in the Charlotte County or Sarasota County as of Monday afternoon.

Coastal communities from Naples to Fort Myers Beach up to the Tampa region are most at risk.

“Mandatory evacuations are only as good as the people who listen to them,” Hyatt said Sunday during an emergency meeting of the Town of Fort Myers Beach Council where the order was mad eofficial.

Town residents should have their hurricane passes with them in order to return to the island. Staff will also be stationed at Target after the hurricane in case residents forget to bring their hurricane passes.

Governor Ron DeSantis issued a state of emergency for Lee County and 50 other counties ahead of Hurricane Milton.

Town of Fort Myers Beach Vice Mayor Jim Atterholt questioned town staff as to the pace of the pickup of debris from Hurricane Helene, which just started on Friday. Town of Fort Myers Beach Operations Manager Frankie Kropacek said the town is “piggybacking” on a Lee County contract for debris pickup. Kropacek said the debris pickup will resume Monday morning.

Some residents have expressed concern that a lot of debris, particularly on the north end of town, has not been picked up yet with the hurricane looming. There is worry that the debris sitting in front of homes right now could become further hazards during Hurricane Milton if not picked up in time.

The National Hurricane Center has issued flood warnings for Lee County through Thursday. While Milton is currently a Category 5 hurricane, the expectation is that it will weaken to a Category 4 hurricane by the time it makes landfall.

A Category 4 hurricane would be similar to Hurricane Ian two years ago and could potentially be as deadly as Hurricane Ian was for the county.

National Weather Service meteorologist Rodney Wynn said a Category 4 hurricane would mean sustained winds of 140 miles per hour or more with gusts up to 170 miles per hour.

“We are telling everybody around the southwest coast to make preparations for a major hurricane from the Big Bend to Naples,” Wynn said.

Wynn said Milton “very well could be” as bad as Hurricane Ian in terms of storm surge.

Wynn said residents around Fort Myers Beach and Lee County can expect to see deteriorating conditions Tuesday evening as rainy conditions and flooding dangers grow worse and wind speeds pick up. Hurricane strength winds could begin to be felt as early as late Tuesday evening, Wynn said.

In a statement announcing the state of emergency, DeSantis warned of life-threatening storm surge for the Gulf Coast.

Lee County schools will close Monday through Thursday due to Tropical Storm Milton.

County offices will be closed through Thursday.

The county began opening emergency shelters Monday.

The Town of Fort Myers Beach Council voted to postpone their Oct. 7 meeting to Oct. 15.

Atterholt suggested residents take photos of their homes inside and outside to use for insurance purposes. “We all know how challenging some of our insurance partners have been,” Atterholt said.

Atterholt strongly advised all residents to leave the island.

“Everybody needs to be concerned,” Atterholt said. “The volatility of this particular storm and the unpredictability of it really requires for the town to err on the side of caution.”

Atterholt stayed on the island in a relatively safe area through Hurricane Ian and said he regretted it. “I urge everybody not to make that same mistake,” he said.

“This could be devastating. We won’t really know until it’s almost too late to leave the island. We really want folks to err on the side of caution and be safe,” Atterholt said.

“I think we saw from Helene that a hurricane far away can do a lot of damage and this is certainly coming a lot more direct than Helene was. It’s definitely a cause for concern.”

U.S. Senator Rick Scott, who visited Fort Myers Beach last week, said “Everyone along Florida’s Gulf Coast needs to be ready. I know that barely one week out from Hurricane Helene’s catastrophic landfall, it is unimaginable to have another major storm barreling toward our state – but you have to get prepared now because your life depends on it.”