Lee County opens six more shelters as Hurricane Milton nears

Lee County opened six additional shelters as of 8 a.m. Tuesday in preparation for Hurricane Milton, which is expected to impact the area later today. These new shelters are available for residents in Evacuation Zones A and B and those in mobile and manufactured homes under the mandatory evacuation order.

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Additional shelters opened in Lee County

Lee County announced the opening of four additional shelters as of noon Tuesday, in preparation for Hurricane Milton.The new shelters include Alico Arena at FGCU, East Lee County High School, Harns Marsh Elementary School and Harns Marsh Middle School. These shelters are available for residents in Evacuation Zones A and B, as well as those in mobile and manufactured homes under the mandatory evacuation order. More than 500 people are currently sheltering at Hertz Arena, with a total of 1,651 residents now across all open shelters in the county.Shelters already in operation include:

• Dunbar High School, 3800 Edison Ave., Fort Myers
• Estero Recreation Center, 9200 Corkscrew Palms Blvd., Estero
• Island Coast High School, 2125 DeNavarra Parkway, Cape Coral
• Gateway High School, 13820 Griffin Drive, Fort Myers
• Hertz Arena, 11000 Everblades Parkway, Estero
• Oak Hammock Middle School, 5321 Tice St., Fort Myers
• Tortuga Preserve Elementary School, 1711 Gunnery Road N., Lehigh Acres
• Treeline Elementary School, 10900 Treeline Ave., Fort Myers
• Varsity Lakes Middle School, 801 Gunnery Road N., Lehigh Acres

The County opened shelters at Dunbar High School, Estero Recreation Center and Island Coast High School Monday. All shelters are pet-friendly, but pets must be leashed or in kennels.

Residents are urged to make plans to evacuate to safer areas by tonight. Transportation to shelters is available through LeeTran, with no fares charged. Visit any LeeTran stop and advise the driver that they need to go to an open shelter.

For additional shelter details and to watch a video of Public Safety Director Ben Abes discussing evacuation efforts, visit the Lee County website at www.leegov.com/storm or follow their Facebook page.

For any questions, residents can contact the Emergency Information Hotline at 2-1-1 or 239-433-3900.

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Lee County opens six more shelters as Hurricane Milton nears