As Hurricane Milton barrels toward Florida with maximum sustained winds at 145 mph and mass evacuation efforts are underway, the state’s ports are preparing for the storm’s arrival in the Tampa area. Currently a Category 4, the hurricane is expected to make landfall as a Category 3 storm late Wednesday night.
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Port Tampa Bay closed its shipping channels Tuesday morning, prohibiting inbound and outbound vessel traffic at the port. The U.S. Coast Guard set port condition “Zulu” meaning sustained gale force winds of 39 to 54 mph would reach the hub within 12 hours, forcing the port’s maritime operators to shutter. Landside operations will continue “as long as safely possible,” the port said.
Other ports on Florida’s western coast including St. Petersburg, Fort Myers Beach and Manatee and Key West have closed maritime operations based on the condition.
Ports on the state’s eastern coast remain open, but restricted, after the Coast Guard set port condition “Yankee,” which indicates that the sustained gale force winds are anticipated within 24 hours.
The Port of Jacksonville (Jaxport) closed its shipping channels for incoming vessels, with ships seeking to depart arranging for a quick exit. Jaxport’s main gates will be open for landside cargo operations on Tuesday. The port is assessing conditions for cargo operations on Wednesday.
Both the Port of Miami and Port Everglades have also suspended incoming traffic.
Shipping delays can be expected in the eastern part of the Gulf of Mexico as vessels avoid the area, Mark Russo, chief science officer of Everstream Analytics, said in a Tuesday briefing.
“There’s a lot of vessels moving between the Yucatan channel between Cuba and the Yucatan Peninsula. A lot of those vessels originate from the northern Gulf of Mexico, and already we’ve seen vessels here waiting for Milton to get out of the way before resuming their tracks along or across the Gulf of Mexico,” said Russo. “Shipping delays will continue to take place here the next several days.”
Russo said in a Tuesday briefing that the central areas of Florida will see the most significant impact from the storm, with disruptions to supply chain operations and logistics covering port operations, water transportation, road, rail and air transportation.
Two north-south interstate highways—I-75 and I-95—could be at risk of disruptions or closures due to the heavy rainfall and tropical storm force winds, particularly as residents flee from the impacted areas, Russo said.
In total, rainfall is expected to amount to five to 12 inches, with localized totals up to 18 inches expected across central to northern portions of the Florida Peninsula through Thursday, according to the National Hurricane Center.
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In terms of rail lines, CSX and Norfolk Southern are the two main carriers operating in the area. According to Russo, there are five intermodal hubs at high risk of disruptions, or even closures, near the metro areas of Tampa, Orlando and Jacksonville.
Both railroads said in Monday statements that they are monitoring and preparing for Hurricane Milton, with the former encouraging intermodal customers to promptly pick up units network-wide.
Air cargo is likely to feel the impact of flight delays and cancelations over the next several days, especially in and around Tampa, but also Orlando and Jacksonville as well. Miami and Fort Lauderdale are not expected to see much disruption.
Florida and Gulf Coast supply chains will also be disrupted by possible fuel shortages, particularly due to the Tampa Bay port’s closure.
Fuel supplies for much of Florida, especially central Florida, arrive from Texas and Louisiana through Port Tampa Bay, said Ben Ruddell, director of the Fewsion Project, which uses data mapping to monitor domestic supply chains down to individual U.S. counties.
The shuttering of Port Tampa Bay could seriously disrupt the fuel supply into western and central Florida, which could then hinder recovery efforts, Ruddell said in a Monday note ahead of the closure.
Port Tampa Bay said it will work with its fuel terminal operators and partners to ensure gas and other fuels move out of the port and to consumers “as long as possible.”
Ruddell advised recovery crews and logisticians to consider bringing their own fuel when responding to the storm and should work with emergency managers in getting on-site advice.
Ahead of the briefing, Jon Davis, chief meteorologist at Everstream Analytics, said other areas like New Orleans and Houston, or the Carolinas and Mid-Atlantic region, do not look like they will be impacted by Milton.
“Milton will also not impact the devastated areas in the southeast where recovery from Helene is still ongoing,” Davis said Monday. “Thus, there will be no delays or additional issues in the recovery operations in the southeast.”
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