With Hurricane Milton making landfall in Florida on Wednesday evening, millions of Sunshine State residents have evacuated their homes or boarded up businesses to brace for the impending storm. This potentially historic storm has fluctuated between Category 3 status (meaning wind speeds above 110 mph) all the way to Category 5 status (wind speeds in excess of 157 mph), and its impacts, both short-term and long-term, will likely be devastating.
With Milton coming only days after Hurricane Helene battered the southeastern U.S., including inland areas many people assumed were more secure, Salon asked experts how to understand this year’s dramatic hurricane season.
