Hurricane Milton’s threat to Jacksonville was downgraded Oct. 9, as Mayor Donna Deegan said rainfall forecasts have been reduced to 1 to 4 inches locally and wind speeds have also been dialed back.
Deegan nonetheless urged local residents to stay inside as the storm moves through the area and to keep off of Interstates 10 and 95 so the highways remain as clear as possible for Floridians evacuating from the south-central part of the state.
In a midday update, Deegan said Jacksonville remains under a storm surge warning and faces 2-4 feet of surge on the Atlantic coast, the Intracoastal Waterway and the St. Johns River. Flooding is expected in what Deegan called “the usual suspect” areas, including Riverside, Moncrief Creek, Ken Knight Drive and other low-lying sites that are prone to flooding.
She said flooding was expected into Friday afternoon, with high tide flooding continuing through the weekend and into next week.
Milton is expected to produce its peak effects in Jacksonville beginning late Oct. 9 and into the late morning hours of Oct. 10, Deegan said.
After initial forecasts called for as much as 12 inches of rain, Deegan said most areas are now expected to get up to 4 inches with “maybe a little more at the Beaches” but not the inundating rain that was initially anticipated.
Wind speeds will be 25-40 mph inland and 30-50 elsewhere, with top gusts of 60 mph.
Shelters
Deegan said 380 people had checked into the six public storm shelters the city opened at 8 a.m. Oct. 9.
She said the city plans to open additional shelters if any of the six reach 75% capacity. The city has identified overflow sites near each of the six shelters.
The open shelter sites are:
• Arlington Middle School, 8141 Lone Star Road, for the general population.
• Atlantic Coast High School, 9735 R.G. Skinner Parkway, for residents with special medical needs, pet friendly.
• Chaffee Trail Elementary, 11400 Sam Caruso Way, for general population.
• Landmark Middle School, 101 Kernan Blvd. N., open for general population, pet friendly.
• LaVilla School of the Arts, 501 N. Davis St., for general population.
• The Legends Center, 5130 Soutel Drive, open for general population and special medical needs, and pet-friendly.
Money for Red Cross
The Red Cross goes into its Milton relief operations with an infusion of funding, as the Jacksonville City Council approved $150,000 for the effort on Oct. 8 and JEA, the Jacksonville Port Authority and the Jacksonville Transportation Authority each contributed $50,000.
JEA workers
To prepare for an ongoing threat of falling trees and power lines, JEA has brought in more than 300 contracted lineworkers and tree trimmers to work in conjunction with the city utility’s crews.
JEA will work into the evening of Oct. 9 and overnight until wind speeds exceed 30 mph, the point at which it is no longer considered safe to work in the field. Work will resume on Oct. 10 when conditions allow.
Deegan said JEA faced a deficit of contracted labor earlier in the week but now has 118% the level of contract crews in the area during Hurricane Helene.
Chief Keith Powers of the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department said local emergency response crews were being sent to south-central Florida to aid first responders in hard-hit areas.
Closings and JIA status
Schools, City Hall, courts and other public offices will be closed through Oct. 10. More closures can be found at www.jaxready.com/milton#accordion.
Jacksonville International Airport remained open as of early afternoon Oct. 9, with few fight cancellations.
The St. Johns River Ferry and Downtown Skyway tram system are closed through Oct. 9 but are expected to resume service on Oct. 10.
Car shelters
Through Oct. 11, public parking garages Downtown will be open and free of charge for residents wanting to protect their cars from storm damage. Sites are:
In addition, residents wanting to shelter their vehicles can park them for free in public Downtown parking garages beginning the morning of Oct. 8. Open garages are:
• Water Street, 541 Water St.
• Ed Ball Building, 238 W. Monroe St.
• Yates Building, 200 E. Adams St.
• Duval Street, 33 W. Duval St.
• Kings Avenue, 1201 Kings Ave.
Milton’s path
As of 11:50 a.m. on Oct. 9, Milton was 145 miles southwest of Tampa and moving northeast at 17 mph with sustained winds of 145 mph. The storm is on a east-northeast path and is expected to make landfall near Sarasota between 10 p.m. Oct. 9 and 2 a.m. Oct. 10.
Communities along the Gulf Coast and south-central Florida are bracing for a severe impact, with forecasts of storm surge of up to 15 feet and up to 18 inches of rain from Tampa through Orlando.