TRACKING MILTON: Transformers blowing across Cape Coral
By WFTX Digital Team,
2 days ago
Fox 4 is in communities across Southwest Florida to bring you the latest updates as Hurricane Milton approaches. Our team will be keeping track of important information for you and your family in one space.
Update 12:56 a.m. | LCEC provides an update on power outages across Southwest Florida
LCEC provides power outage update with Fox 4 as Hurricane Milton makes its way across Florida
The flares on the transformers are defense mechanisms, which will allow them to pinpoint the issue and fix it faster, according to LCEC public relations director Karen Ryan.
Update 12:26 a.m. | Storm surge flooding in downtown Fort Myers
More than five feet of storm surge flooded parts of downtown Fort Myers. Levels are expected to begin to recede early Thursday morning.
Storm surge flooding in downtown Fort Myers
Update 12:11 a.m. | FMB flooding subsides
Flooding in Fort Myers Beach is subsiding as Milton moves across Florida.
FMB flooding subsided
Update 11:40pm | Roof Blows Off Tropicana Field
Hurricane Milton's winds ripped off the roof of Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg Wednesday evening. Tropicana Field was a staging area for hundreds of Florida National Guardsmen and electrical workers before the storm.
Tropicana Roof Ripped Off In St Pete
Update 11:37pm Transformers Blow As Milton Nears
Sparks flew as transformers blow in Cape Corral.
Trent Transformers Blowing in Cape Coral
Update: 11:33pm North Port Wind Forrest Saunders
High Wind Gusts in North Port During Milton
Update: 10:41 P.M. | Welfare checks
If you need to check in on how your family and friends are doing after Hurricane Milton passes, Lee County and local fire rescue departments have partnered to provide welfare checks.
People need only to email WelfareStormChecks@leegov.com with the following information about the people they wish to check on:
Name
Adress
Phone number
The requests will be will be directed to the local fire rescue departments. Residents are asked to be patient as requests may be significant. Update: 10:10 P.M. The non-emergency phone lines at the Punta Gorda Police Department are temporarily unavailable. Call 941-833-4181 until further notice.
Update: 9:58 P.M. Lee County Sheriff's Office update on storm surge in area from Hurricane Milton.
Update: 9:20 P.M. Our Ella Rhoades gives an update on transformer trouble in Cape Coral.
Tracking Milton: Transformer Trouble in Cape Coral
Update: 9:01 P.M. We're seeing multiple power flashes as neighbors in Marco Island, North Fort Myers, Pine Island, and Sanibel/Captiva report power outages from Hurricane Milton - find the updated numbers here
Power Flashes from Luminary camera
Update: 8:36 P.M. Hurricane Milton has made landfall near Siesta Key in Sarasota County.
Update: 8:30 P.M.
Fox 4 News
Update: 8:10 P.M. Shelters in Charlotte County no longer accepting evacuees due to hazardous conditions.
Update: 7:30 P.M. Gov. Desantis and state officials give an update as Hurricane Milton approaches landfall.
FL Gov. Desantis gives update as Hurricane Milton approaches landfall
Update: 7:13 P.M As of 7 p.m., the City of Cape Coral’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) has suspended all emergency services across the city due to sustained wind speeds reaching 45 mph or higher. This precaution is necessary to ensure the safety of police, fire, and medical personnel, who will shelter in place until conditions are safe to resume operations. Although emergency services are temporarily suspended, 9-1-1 calls will still be logged, and a prioritization system is in place. Emergency personnel will respond as soon as conditions allow.
Update: 7:05 P.M.
Fox 4 Now
Wednesday 6:50 P.M. Update from LeeAnn's Paradise Vacation Rentals in Fort Myers Beach as the storm surge from Hurricane Milton continues to move inland.
Wednesday 6:30 P.M. Our Ella Rhoades gives an update as Charlotte Co. Emergency Services are suspended due to the hazardous conditions from Hurricane Milton.
Charlotte Co. Emergency Services suspended due to hazardous conditions from Hurricane Milton
Law enforcement, Fire and Emergency Medical Services in Charlotte County have suspended emergency response to calls for service due to hazardous weather conditions. Services will resume as conditions permit. For Hurricane Milton information, call the Charlotte County Emergency Operations Center at 941-833-4000.
Wednesday 6:25 P.M. Florida Divison of Emergency Management on where to shelter from severe winds during Hurricane Milton.
Wednesday 6:00 P.M. If your house starts to flood North Collier Fire Rescue offers some tips to help prevent electrical injuries
Wednesday 5:54 P.M. Naples Police department reporting that water is starting to come over the beach.
Wednesday 5:20 p.m.
Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno gives an update on roadway hazards.
Wednesday 5:15 p.m. Lee County asking the community to shelter in place
Wednesday 5:00 p.m. Sarasota County Government gives a 5 P.M. update ahead of Hurricane Milton.
Wednesday 4:35 p.m.
Fox 4's Katie Walls gives an update on Hurricane Milton's forecast.
Fox 4 Now: 4:30PM ET Update - Hurricane Milton
Fox 4's Ryan Krueger is in Fort Myers Beach where Estero Boulevard is already seeing water on over the road.
Fort Myers Beach flooding as Hurricane Milton approaches
Glades County Emergency Management is still surveying but is reporting 29 Homes Destroyed, 1 Injury with the second Lakeport Tornado.
Wednesday 4 p.m. Update from the City of Cape Coral - they have an online welfare check form to check on loved ones after the storm.
Our Ella Rhoades in El Jobean as Hurricane Milton approaches.
Charlotte County bracing for storm surge from Milton
Wednesday 3 p.m. Update: The NWS has at least 11 confirmed tornadoes across South Florida today.
Florida Light and Power gives an update as they prepare for Hurricane Milton.
Our Veronica Acosta with a live look as Southwest Florida braces for Hurricane Milton to make landfall.
SWFL Braces for Hurricane Milton
The NWS confirms at least seven tornadoes have hit the area today.
Wednesday, 3 p.m.
The City of North Port are asking people who live in the Lady Slipper/Oaks Park area near Myakkahatchee Creek to evacuate.
We're hearing from neighbors in North Fort Myers who are dealing with tornado damage. Community correspondent Miyoshi Price spoke to a woman whose home was damaged by a tree branch in today's tornado.
Hurricane Milton: North Fort Myers resident shows damage left behind by tornado
Community correspondent Austin Schargorodsky spoke to a man who experienced the North Fort Myers tornado.
Longtime North Fort Myers resident weathers tornado ahead of Milton
Wednesday, 2:25 p.m.
There are now 15,988 customers without power in Lee County.
Cape Coral city leaders provided a brief update on their preparations.
Wednesday 2 p.m. The NWS reports Milton's storm surge is beginning to arrive along the coast.
Wednesday 1:30 p.m. Governor Ron DeSantis provided an update on Hurricane Milton preparation.
Wednesday 12:50 p.m. Lee County Sheriff's Office shared this image of the aftermath of the tornado that swept over Matlacha Bridge.
Charlotte County has a curfew in effect from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. starting tonight and until further notice. The curfew also includes a ban on the sale of alcohol.
Wednesday 12:30 p.m. Meteorologist Trent Aric was live on air as a funnel cloud swept over the Matlacha Bridge.
Hurricane Milton: Tornado sweeps over bridge during meteorologist's live report
The National Weather Service in Miami now confirms at least four tornadoes in the area so far today.
Wednesday 11:30 a.m. The National Weather Service's Miami office shared the below image of a massive tornado near SR80.
Wednesday 11 a.m. Florida Highway Patrol has announced it is no longer allowing emergency shoulder use on I-75 Eastbound due to lightened traffic. Anyone still evacuating is asked to use normal lanes.
The state had allowed drivers to use the shoulder of the highway beginning yesterday between the 101-mile marker and the 25-mile marker to ease heavy traffic during evacuation.
The funnel cloud was picked up by Florida Department of Transportation cameras.
Wednesday 10:15 a.m. The City of Sanibel is providing an update on Hurricane Milton preparations. Watch here:
Wednesday, 9:30 a.m. Governor Ron DeSantis is scheduled to give an update on the state response to Hurricane Milton at 9:30 a.m. You can watch it here:
Hurricane Milton: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Wednesday morning update
Wednesday, 9 a.m. The Naples Police Department has implemented a mandatory driving curfew starting at 4 p.m. today. After 4 p.m., only essential personnel with credentials should be on the roads.
Watch the latest forecast below.
Milton still a Category 5 Hurricane as it moves towards the west coast of Florida
Wednesday, 6:55 a.m. Fox 4 Senior Reporter Kaitlin Knapp is riding with Charlotte County Community Correspondent, Alex Orenczuk , in Storm Fox 4.0 in Manasota Key. There's still debris on the side of the road from Hurricane Helene, and they report that some side streets are already starting to flood. Evacuation orders are in place, but they have seen people driving around. Here's video from inside Storm Fox 4.0 just before 7 a.m.
storm fox in manasota key
Wednesday, 6:40 a.m. Fox 4's Miyoshi Price shows you what downtown Fort Myers business owners have have done to protect their businesses from Hurricane Milton. Watch her live report here:
Downtown Fort Myers businesses prepare for Milton
Wednesday, 6:15 a.m. The Lee County Sheriff's Office says some roads in Fort Myers Beach already have 10" of water over them. They are:
First St between Crescent St & Old San Carlos Blvd
Second St between Crescent St & Old San Carlos Blvd.
Third St between Crescent St & Old San Carlos Blvd
Tuesday, 11 p.m.
The Florida Department of Transportation implemented Emergency Shoulder Use for drivers traveling on I-75 Alligator Alley Southbound from State Road 29 to the Everglades Toll Plaza to assist in evacuations.
Tuesday, 8 p.m.
The U.S. National Weather Service issued its 8 p.m. update.
Tuesday, 7:30 p.m.
Charlotte County Utilities will be lowering water pressure in the Port Charlotte Service Area starting at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 9.
The pressure will remain lower until the storm passes, according to county officials.
Residents are asked to limit water usage until further notice to reduce strain on the sewer system. This is because storm surges and heavy rainfall will inundate the sewer system, making it difficult for wastewater to flow properly.
Tuesday, 7 p.m.
The Sarasota Police Department announced access to Bird, St. Armands, Lido, and Siesta Keys is officially closed.
Tuesday, 6:45 p.m.
Over 4,610 people and close to 700 pets are sheltered in Sarasota County evacuation centers, according to a representative for Sarasota County.
That number includes around 3,900 community members, county employees and Sarasota County School personnel.
All evacuation centers in the county reported having space for more community members.
However, county officials offered this warning:
For anyone who leaves the shelter after checking in and are expecting to return, we cannot guarantee their original room assignment as many people are seeking shelter in our evacuation centers.
Tuesday, 6:30 p.m.
There is no parking left at Florida SouthWestern State College, according to Assistant City Manager Marco Island.
Tuesday, 6:15 p.m.
Charlotte County Emergency Management issued an evacuation order for residents in Yellow Zone-C.
Those in Red Zone-A and Orange Zone-B are already ordered to evacuate.
The evacuation also includes residents in any zone living in mobile and manufactured homes. Charlotte County Emergency Management urges residents to leave now, do not wait.
If you need to evacuate but don't have a ride, Charlotte County Emergency Management is offering free rides.
Tuesday, 6 p.m.
Twenty-eight counties are now under a hurricane warning.
Tuesday, 5:15 p.m.
Charlotte County update
Once Hurricane Milton passes, Charlotte County will deploy Info Hubs at some county libraries and recreation centers.
The hubs will have printed flyers of updated information on recovery efforts, relief programs, and resources available to assist residents and businesses impacted.
The Info Hubs' locations will be based on the library or recreation center's accessibility.
Fox4 will also keep you updated on their locations after roads are cleared and all Charlotte County facilities have been assessed for damage.
The info hubs look like white newspaper stands and are clearly marked Info Hubs.
North Port update
The Department of Public Works is lowering water levels in North Port ahead of Hurricane Milton. Currently, over one million gallons are being moved out of the city every four minutes.
Lee County Government update
Shelters: The county’s open hurricane evacuation shelters continue to have capacity for more evacuees. Some shelters are more crowded than others.
For example, Estero Recreation Center is at 75% capacity, but nearby Hertz Arena has 4,800 spaces available.
Finding gas in North Port is becoming more difficult. However, the state says it's working to expedite refuels.
In Gov. Ron DeSantis' latest update, he said at least 43 fuel trucks were given police escort to get to stations as soon as possible. He said more than 1.2 million gallons of gas and diesel are arriving today.
He also said the state has 268,000 gallons of diesel and 110,000 gallons of gasoline on standby.
Unfortunately, some stations are already wrapping pumps in plastic until Milton passes.
Others are already on cash only and set to close soon.
Update from Collier County
Collier County Public Schools announces school will be closed through Friday, Oct. 11. As of Tuesday, class will resume on Monday, Oct. 14.
Tuesday, 3:15 p.m.
State leaders provided an update on Hurricane Milton.
Governor DeSantis 3:30 pm Milton Update: Oct. 8
Tuesday, 2:30 p.m.
Sanibel Mayor Richard Johnson has mandated that everyone— including residents, tourists and others— evacuate the island before 10 p.m. Tuesday.
Watch the video below to see how neighbors are preparing.
EVACUATE SANIBEL on Tuesday no later than 10 p.m.
Check the following for more evacuation information in your county:
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