U.S. military bases in Florida started to evacuate troops and aircraft on Monday ahead of Hurricane Milton, a Category 5 storm that is expected to make landfall in Florida on Wednesday.
In an update regarding the storm on Monday, the National Hurricane Center warned, “Data from an Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter aircraft indicate that Milton has strengthened to a Category 5 hurricane. The maximum sustained winds are estimated to be 160 mph (250 km/h) with higher gusts.”
On Monday, Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, the Pentagon’s press secretary, told reporters that the Defense Department is preparing for “all potential contingencies” ahead of Hurricane Milton’s expected landfall.
Ryder said, “The federal government, to include [the Department of Defense], is leaning very far forward to be ready to respond to Hurricane Milton, you know, to include thinking through all the potential contingencies, search-and-rescue route clearance, those kinds of things.”
Ryder also told reporters that the Pentagon is coordinating with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) “to be prepared for the potential impacts once it makes landfall.”
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The Pentagon’s preparations ahead of Hurricane Milton come as over 230 individuals have been confirmed dead in the wake of Hurricane Helene’s recent devastation. Military.com reported that the National Weather Service’s projections have indicated that Tampa’s MacDill Air Force Base is currently in Milton’s expected path and that the predictions have resulted in widespread evacuations.
According to Military.com, most of MacDill Air Force Base’s schools, services, and other resources were expected to be closed on Tuesday.
“Unfortunately, we’ve done this before,” Col. Edward Szczepanik, MacDill’s 6th Air Refueling Wing’s commander, said in a Facebook video statement. “So, let’s be good teammates and help each other out so that we can all close the base and weather the storm.”
Rose Riley, a U.S. Air Force spokesperson, confirmed that MacDill also evacuated 12 KC-135 aircraft to Kansas’ McConnell Air Force Base, while the 482nd Fighter Wing at Miami’s Homestead Air Reserve Base evacuated seven F-16 jets to San Antonio, Texas.
Military.com reported that U.S. Navy officials also announced on Monday that preparations were underway ahead of the hurricane. In a statement to Military.com, officials confirmed that three Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers at Jacksonville’s Naval Station Mayport would be sent out to sea, multiple aircraft would be evacuated or secured at the base, and other vessels would be anchored in “heavy weather mooring positions.”
