With speeds around 200 kilometers per hour Hurricane Milton arrived today on the west coast of Florida. Shortly before the hurricane reached the American state, it had been downgraded from the highest category 5 to category 4 and finally to 3. Despite the weakening, however, the American authorities warn of the danger faced by the remaining residents in the wider region, a few days after the hurricane hit “Ilene”. US Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas described the situation to CNN as a “matter of life and death”, as the news agency reported first casualties and widespread power outages in the southeastern US state.

American meteorologist Sarah Griffin, a specialist in tropical cyclones from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, tells Reuters: “Despite the downgrade, severe property damage is expected even if the hurricane weakens during the day as it moves inland. So there is good news. So there will be less problems with strong winds. On the coasts, however, we will continue to experience large, strong storms.”

Extensive interruptions in electricity and water supply

According to initial reports, the area south of the city of Tampa on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, which had been designated as a high risk area even before the hurricane hit, was particularly affected. In the city of St. Petersburg, the authorities were forced to cut off the supply of drinking water after pipes burst.

Meteorologist Sarah Griffin warns, however, that the real threat from Hurricane Milton is not the strongest winds and gusts: “I know that usually with hurricanes we focus on the speed and strength of the winds. The real problem in hurricanes, however, is not the wind, but the water. It’s the storms, it’s the rainfall. So while the extreme weather event is gradually weakening, Hurricane Milton will continue to cause severe storms and flooding.”

Reuters, dpa