Tampa officials make storm preps

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Safety is first, especially for 99-year-old Earlene Newton. Her daughter-in-law, Jeanne Newton, is helping with the temporary move ahead of Hurricane Helene.

“She’s almost a 100-years-old and we want to be sure we were not going to be stuck at the last minute,” Newton said.

She has lived in the Dana Shores community, just west of Tampa International Airport for more than 50 years. This is not the first time a storm’s impacts have threated her home and safety.

“The water has come up but not come into the house. But again, better to be safe than sorry and I’m worried about the electricity going out,” Newton said.

Even though most neighbors appear to be sticking around, they all live in Evacuation Zone A which is under a mandatory evacuation order in Hillsborough County.

“Everybody has to make their own decisions. They don’t have a 100-year-old to worry about,” Newton said.

A few miles away from the Newton family, the airport is preparing for impacts from the hurricane.

John Tiliacos is the Executive Vice President of Operations who wants travelers and workers to be safe.

“We are going to suspend all commercial passenger and cargo operations beginning at 2 a.m.,” Tiliacos said.

Officials are also telling stranded travelers to leave the airport either to a shelter or hotel.

“If anyone is at the airport, what we are going to do is make arrangements to get them to a nearby shelter,” Tiliacos said.

Officials say the airport could see sustained winds of up to 45 mph, wind gusts up to 60 mph, and a storm surge up to 8 feet. That threat of water in coastal communities is a concern.

Tampa Mayor Jane Castor also gave residents who live in the evacuation zone some advice.

“We’re asking everyone to hide from the wind and run from the water,” Castor said.

Countywide, families in mobile homes have been ordered to evacuate. Tampa police officers even went door-to-door urging people to leave.

“The Tampa Police Department stands ready to rescue when needed. But we don’t want to have to call our officers in to rescue someone that should’ve evacuated long ago,” Castor said.

That’s one of the reasons the Newton family is heading out to higher ground.

“You don’t want to wait too late to find a hotel,” Bruce Newton said.

The City of Tampa plans to activate its emergency operations center at 7 a.m. Thursday.

If you want to see which zone you live in: 2024 Hurricane Evacuation Assessment Tool (HEAT) (arcgis.com)

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