Florida Fall #2: Hurricanes

September and October are peak hurricane season in Florida. After Hurricane Helene made landfall near Perry, Florida, on September 27, 2024, and walloped North Carolina, we are soon to experience a historic hurricane that swiftly ratcheted up from a tropical storm to a Cat #5 hurricane on October 7.

Hurricane Milton is expected to cause devastation throughout peninsular Florida after likely landfall on the central west coast of Florida with a devastating double-digit storm surge forecast. Folks are comparing it to Hurricane Irma which engulfed the entire state of Florida in 2017. Hurricane Irma made its first landfall as a Cat #4 hurricane on Cudjoe Key and then hit Marco Island as a Cat #3 storm on September 10. The storm continued northward and impacted the entire state.

Even though Hurricane Irma traveled northward and did not move across the state, Indian River County experienced strong winds that downed trees (and, hence, power lines) and brought scalding salt-laden winds. The hammock canopy – and even the understory – at the Oslo Riverfront Conservation Area (ORCA) were impacted …