Hurricane Milton – Update #6 – 10/8/24
University of Florida officials are actively monitoring Hurricane Milton, which is expected to begin affecting the west coast of Florida by Wednesday night. While the storm’s exact path remains unclear, here is what we know this morning:
Hurricane Milton’s structure began to change overnight, as projected by forecasters at the National Hurricane Center. The storm weakened slightly to winds of 155 mph, which is the equivalent of a strong Category 4 hurricane. Forecasters said the changes will continue, which should weaken Milton into a powerful Category 3 hurricane by the time it makes landfall along the west coast of Florida.
Also, the changes of the storm’s structure are expected to lead to an expansion of the storm’s wind field, “roughly doubling in size” hurricane and tropical storm-force winds.
Eastern Alachua County, which includes the UF Gainesville campus, remained under a Tropical Storm Watch as of the 5 a.m., advisory of the National Weather Service in Jacksonville. Portions of Western Alachua County remained under a Tropical Storm Warning as well.
Hurricane Milton is expected to affect the Gainesville area with winds ranging between 58 and 73 mph, which are the equivalent of a Tropical Storm.
Additionally, forecasters expect 3 to 6 inches of rain, which the potential for localized flooding rain. As a result, a Flood Watch is in effect for all of Alachua County through Thursday.
Tropical storm-force winds are expected to begin in North Central Florida early Wednesday.
UF/IFAS and other UF personnel outside of Alachua County should adhere to their county government closures and consult their supervisors. Other UF units throughout the state will have similar closings in keeping with their county government guidelines.
UF Health hospitals and clinical practices are continuing normal operations in Alachua County. However, the operating hours of units throughout the state will vary. For up-to-date information about UF Health closures, visit UFHealth.org.
Any additional scheduling changes will be announced through official UF channels such as the UF home page and the UF Alert Emergency Notification System.
For additional information, please visit the National Hurricane Center.
Additional information:
Commonly asked questions regarding Hurricane Milton
Here’s how to prepare for hurricane season
Pre-storm preparation for students in UF housing
UF/IFAS Disaster Preparation & Recovery
This update was posted on Oct. 8 at 6:45 a.m.
