3 Pinellas County shelters at capacity; 11 remain open ahead of Hurricane Milton

LARGO, Fla. (WFLA) — Pinellas County shelters began to reach capacity Wednesday as people sought refuge from Hurricane Milton.

Largo High School, Lealman Innovation Academy, and the Palm Harbor University Building 19, which is for special needs residents, have all reached capacity.

However, Cathie Perkins, the Pinellas County Emergency Management director, announced three new shelters in place for residents.

These are:

• Palm Harbor Middle: 1800 Tampa Road, Palm Harbor (general population)
• New Heights Elementary: 3901 37th Street North, St. Petersburg (general population)
• Fairmount Park Elementary: 575 41st Street South, St. Petersburg (general population)

“I cannot stress enough to you, that your options are quickly diminishing for what you can do to get out of harm’s way,” Perkins said.

A list of all the Pinellas County shelters and their status is below:

According to Perkins, there are about 8,000 people currently in shelters and a capacity of up to 20,000.

Pinellas County has a mandatory evacuation for zones A, B, and C.

You can get more information on evacuation tips on the county website.

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