TRIGGER WARNING I can’t believe some people aren’t evacuating in Florida

[Newsenmum]

I really don’t mean to be insensitive. This hurricane Milton is terrifying but I’m really struggling to understand this. I know there are some awful situations where people can’t drive/are disabled or elderly and feel helpless but what I CAN’T understand is people not trying. Like they’re completely putting their head in the sand.

I’m part of a few mum Facebook groups that are mostly American. I kid you not, people are staying in zones with their little babies where there is mandatory evacuation. Some reasons why they aren’t leaving:

• my dog is aggressive and won’t be allowed in the shelter, so I’m staying put with him and going to hope and pray. Why is the dog worth more than a kid?
• i have too many animals which don’t fit in the car, I’m worried about the chickens (!!) again.. wtf? Basically suicide for their kids because they don’t want to leave chickens!
• im from flORIda so I’ll be fine! Hopefully it’s not as bad as they think. I don’t want to disrupt us. wtf??
• my babies have a block safe room and that’s ‘normally fine’

There are other Americans trying to send them money, urging them to go storm shelters or at least a bit more inland!

These are people in areas that have 15ft storm surge, there is so much debris already around that is going to be trashing their houses. If they want a certain death for themselves then fine but can’t get over them not saving their babies 😭😭😭 all because they won’t leave the bloody chickens that are going to drown either way!!

I couldn't leave my cats it would break me

I'd obviously go if we could get to a shelter with them but leaving them behind at the mercy of the storm wouldn't be an option

That's why I said open half of the outbound lanes - emergency services etc use 2 lanes, evacuees use the other 2 of the 4 'inbound ones.

I don't think people are always able to make rational decisions in frightening situations. It's easy to judge when you're not experiencing the same circumstances.

You could bring your cats. I would.

Oh definitely would go if I could take them, just edited to that affect, but I see some of the shelters don't allow pets, how come they are allowed not to?

Some seem to accept them but others dont

But that is not what is coming. It’s double that. It maybe the current wind speed but we are still 12 hours out.

Yeah ok. Big picture here. Really important point made.

And also it’s untrue

It really was dreadful.

As the Ship begun to list, it turned corridors into '' vertical lift shafts'' and hand rails gave way with the amount of people hanging on to them, causing people to fall and not be able to save themselves.

There are You Tube videos where English subtitles have been put on to read what the Survivors said from other Nations.

They were heroic.

What was really appalling were some thieves on the stairways stealing people's fine jewellery.

One man had his gold chain taken- However, he never spotted the thief amongst the Survivors.

One small 'lesson learned' is for better life rafts - ones that are easier to manage if they do overturn in high winds.

Allergies. Nowhere for them to 💩. Contamination if they 💩 everywhere.

We had floods in central Europe a few weeks ago.
Some people refused evacuation half a day before the flood came (organised evacuation, when a bus would drive them to some shelter accomodation), than refused again when local firefighters went door to door when the water was rising and than called for help a few hours later, endangering the rescue services

That is in fact what the BBC is actually saying.

And they've got tornadoes already, even before landfall.

I’m quite confused by this to be honest

If my house was on fire and I let my children stay in their bedroom and die, then I would be arrested, if I survived, for murder. To me, both situations are similar.

We were in Florida on holiday in 2004 when we were told there was a hurricane (Frances) coming. We drove to Orlando and sat it out in a huge block built hotel which we hoped would be safe. We had to stay away from the windows in our room and keep the drapes drawn. During the worst part we had to take refuge in the ballroom which had no windows and you could still hear the noise outside. Once we left after a few days the devastation we witnessed was horrendous. Regardless of peoples reasons for not leaving their homes we can only pray for their safety and least possible loss of life.

This guy is doing ''live'' coverage.

Do you mean the BBC weather app? It's automated isn't it... Will probably update a bit more accurately nearer the time.

@Begsthequestion you've linked to fuel and food being prepared, but nothing about the government evacuating the more vulnerable etc. The USA has supposedly one of the best armies in the world and yet they can’t fly their own citizens out of a zone that’s marked for death if you stay? And even worse is the citizens of the USA don’t even demand their government helps, it begs belief that they aren’t able to count on their own country in times of extreme hardship.

Why do people leave their animals to die? Wld it not be kinder to shoot them? One advantage of living in the states is easy access to guns in this situation?

@FitsLikeAGlove could you point a gun and pull the trigger on something you love as much as a member of your family? I’ve no idea how anyone could leave their animals behind but I completely understand why they don’t turn into monsters and start shooting them…

Just seen a woman on the news..she has a 3yr old..but apparently ' god will provide '

I didn't say that it was right to stay; I just said that, in my experience, there is a lot of "what will be will be" fatalism.

Having said that, I did stay, but I was a super niave Brit. I know a lot of people are genuinely traumatised when there's a hurricane warning because of their previous experiences.

I remember when it happened that almost everyone here in Sweden knew of someone who had been on the ship. It is very interesting to hear how and why people survived, what they did. I do wonder how those who stepped on others to get up the vertical stairs felt afterwards. They did what they had to I guess, but still.

The government is offering a huge amount of help. Shelters. Free transport. Only so many flights that can leave and they have to stop when the wind gets too strong which happens a long time before the main hurricane hits. Plus more people will want to drive I imagine to be able to load things up, pets, kids, important possessions. Plus when they get to wherever you are flying then they need to have somewhere to go. That’s going to be much more expensive in NYC than if they drive across state lines and stay at one of the discounted hotels being offered.

I am not sure where you are getting the information that they are not helping. They absolutely are.

I wouldn’t stay - I would leave - but I wouldn’t leave my animals.. they’d have to come. Even if we camped out of the car with chickens in a car park somewhere away from the predicted path is what I’d do. No way I would stay but I do understand how people would not just leave their animals to die. But I’d do whatever it took. Surely if you could get to a shelter the chickens or cats or whatever could live in the car! It’s not forever. I mean it’s life or death you’d just cope.