‘This is the hole you’re in’: Devastating storm engulfs homes as people are told to evacuate
Thousands of cars have blocked Florida roads ahead of the storm, but the time for evacuations is over.
Tampa Mayor Jane Castor said up to 15 feet of storm surge expected for her city would be deep enough to swallow an entire house.
“So if you’re in it, that’s basically the cage you’re in,” he said.
The hurricane will hit communities still reeling two weeks after Hurricane Helene flooded roads and homes in West Florida, killing at least 230 people in the South.
In the bay city of Punta Gorda, about 100 miles south of Tampa, streets were still littered yesterday with piles of wet furniture, clothes, books, appliances and other debris dragged from damaged homes as high as 5 feet.
