Several major airports in Florida are planning to shut down operations in preparation for Hurricane Milton, which has rapidly intensified into a potentially catastrophic storm as it approaches the state’s Gulf Coast.
Tampa International airport said it will suspend operations at 09:00 local time on 8 October and “reopen when safe to do so”. It urges air travellers to check directly with airlines for updates.
Meanwhile, Orlando International airport plans to shut down commercial operations the following day at 08:00 local time.
”We’ll continue to monitor the hurricane’s path and we’ll post updates as they become available,” the airport says on social media. ”Please continue to work with your airline in regards to your flight.”
”For the next two days, we’ll have aircraft taking off and landing here,” Orlando International chief executive Kevin Thibault said during a 7 October press conference. “Once that stops, the group here will do things like… tie down all the boarding bridges to make sure we protect the assets we have here.”
Southwest Florida International airport in Fort Myers plans to close 8-9 October.
American Airlines says it is “closely monitoring” the storm’s progression. The carrier has scheduled “multiple additional flights with more than 2,000 seats” to Tampa International and Sarasota-Bradenton International airports late on 7 October and early on 8 October. It will suspend operations to those airports shortly after midnight on 8 October.
American has also issued travel alerts for 12 airports in Florida. ”If an American flight has been cancelled or excessively delayed, customers may cancel their itinerary and request a refund by visiting our website,” it says.
Miramar, Florida-headquartered Spirit Airlines has issued a travel advisory and is waiving fare differences for changing itineraries through 17 October to Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Miami, Orlando, Tampa and West Palm Beach.
The National Weather Service has warned that Milton “poses an extremely serious threat to Florida”, with warnings of “life-threatening” storm surge issued for Tampa Bay and sustained winds exceeding 152kt (282km/h).
The hurricane is expected to make landfall on Florida’s west coast on 9 October.
Residents in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee are still recovering from the damage caused by Hurricane Helene, a tropical cyclone that devastated the region late last month.
