Right now on Ana Cabrera reports, Breaking News, as florida readies for a direct hit from a monster storm. Mass evacuations and urgent preparations as Hurricane Milton charges through the gulf. Were in tampa, a city that could see its worst storm in a century. The president expected to speak from the White House in just minutes as the nation sees two historic backtoback storms, well carry those remarks live. Also ahead, misinformation about the response to helene embroils the 2024 race. Vp harris slamming Donald Trump over lies about storm aid. And Breaking News at the Supreme Court this morning, justices hearing the first major case of the new term. The critical question should Ghost Guns be regulated as firearms . Thanks so much for joining us. It is 10 00 a. M. Eastern, 7 00 a. M. Pacific, im Ana Cabrera reporting from new york. Mass evacuations not seen in years unfolding in florida right now as a Monster Hurricane barrels toward the Gulf Coast. Hurricane milton is now a category 4 and still an extremely powerful hurricane, at this Point Landfall near tampa appears likely, with a catastrophic Storm Surge never before seen in this area, potentially up to 15 feet. Were talking historic impact. Tampas mayor not mincing words when it comes to the unprecedented danger. Helene was a wakeup call. This is literally catastrophic. And i can say without any dramatization whatsoever, if you choose to stay in one of those evacuation areas, youre going to die. In just the last 24 hours, we have seen a Max Exodus to get out of the Storms Path with bumper to Bumper Traffic seen from the Gulf Coast to central florida. We have got it all covered with Nbcs Marissa Parra joining us from tampa. Dana griffin In Naples. And Meteorologist Michelle Grossman is tracking this Monster Form for us. Lets start there. Bring us the very latest. Hi there, ana, were looking at a very destructive storm. Well see catastrophic conditions, well see life threatening conditions. I know we have been saying this, but we cant say it enough, it is time to evacuate if you have not, we have just over 36 hours, 36 to 40 hours before this makes landfall. Lets get you to the latest. Were looking at a category 4 storm, very strong storm, it is moving through a super charged gulf. The waters are so warmheyre recordbreaking temperatures and thats fueling this system. Were expecting to stay category 4 storm over the next 24 hours. It will weaken a bit to a category 3, forecasted to, as it makes landfall later on tomorrow, around 10 00 p. M. To 2 00 a. M. A very strong storm and it is going to expand in size as well. Thats going to increase the Storm Surge threat which i think will be the legacy with this storm. Now, as we go throughout time here, here is the path as we go through today, category 4, may jump Tie Category 5, but throughout wednesday, most of wednesday, category 4, then it makes its approach to the West Coast of florida. Landfall anywhere between 10 00 p. M. To 2 00 a. M. Thursday, that is the latest track as a category 3 storm. Were going to see Winds Gusting up to 100 miles per hour. That is dangerous on its own. There is still a ton of debris from helene, thats going to make it doubly or triply, quadruply as dangerous. Thats something well watch over the next couple of days. Tropical alerts from the carolinas to the keys. Where you see that bright red color, that is a hurricane warning, unfortunately includes Cedar Key that was hit so hard with helene, down to tampa, Fort Myers, looking at Tropical Storm warnings, Tropical Storm watches as well. Lets talk about the destructive winds. These are damaging. Were talking about 100mileperhour wind gusts, up to 110, Storm Surge as you mentioned up to 15 feet. Were certainly going to keep on top of this for you over the next 36 to 40 hours. So much to track, thank you very much, michelle grossman. Marissa, milton could Hit Tampa directly. So what are the fears there and how are they preparing . Reporter ill point out for those who dont know, im looking at a body of water on the other side of this, a lot of Surface Area in this region, whether it is the gulf of mexico, tampa bay, a channel of water, you see the preparations preparing for whether it could be flooding, whether it could be Storm Surge, which we are expecting the strong possibility of sandbags, we have Water Bladder ready to be filled and Flood Protection barriers will hopefully do their job to protect the businesses, which are shut down. This is a ghost town. If this looks familiar for anyone watching us during our Hurricane Helene coverage, it is because this is exactly the same preparations we saw before, but here is what we are seeing that is different. We went to some of the hardest Hit Areas in Pinellas County yesterday, treasure island, Barrier Island outside of st. Petersburg area, were talking to residents who were showing us the devastation, were talking about all of that debris that now poses a risk whether it be through the wind, whether it be through the water, if they see another Storm Surge with milton, and so theyre in the process of cleaning up the mess that helene left behind and, of course, residents like Jeff Lund who we spoke to are so worried about what theyre going to find yet again. It will be a war zone. 160mileanhour winds hitting the shore, 12foot Surge and a lot of homes arent, you know, homes like this and stuff, theyre up to code, but homes like this and like that, i mean, theyre going to the block walls will stay, but theyll lose everything, the roofs, i think. Reporter i was right here with you ahead of helene. Here is what i can tell you is different ahead of milton. It is a lot more empty now. There are a lot more evacuations, a lot less people walking around ahead of milton, more anxiety, there are a lot more cars On The Road. I know we have seen those packed interstates and highways on their way, further north or further south to safety. Ive spoken to a lot of first responders doing their job and theyre not meeting resistance. People are already evacuated or on their way out. It is good to hear and see people just taking those warnings seriously. Thank you so much, marissa parra. Stay safe. Dana, youre a couple of hours south of tampa In Naples. The warning stretches that far. What is the scene like there . Reporter yeah, so, ana, good to be with you today. Evacuation mandatory evacuations started at 6 00 a. M. Today. Beach access is closed. Behind me this is low tide. We saw much higher waves yesterday, but in the distance, you can see surfers showing up. We saw this yesterday and theyre back out today, a different group, but this is what were seeing here. People coming to the beach, the beach is now closed. But theyre taking advantage of this opportunity to try to hit some waves before milton reaches shore. Right now were seeing a lot of Heavy Rain in the area. This is from a totally different system. This is not even milton. So were getting extra rain, more saturation for the ground, we already have seen some localized flooding on the streets, which usually happens here In Naples when there is any sort of rain event. So you can only imagine when more rain comes through, during that storm, just how inundated this area could be. We have received Storm Surge warnings on our phones, 36 hours before the storm hit. Just reminding people to seek higher ground to move your vehicles. We have seen several vehicles that have moved to City Garages to try to protect vehicles from Storm Surge, but it could be feet high and thats why it is very concerning. We have spoken to some neighbors, one who stayed put during ian. And he said that is not a mistake hes going to make. He said i would rather drive out of here than canoe out of here. It is important to remember, if youre told to evacuate, you must do so. Here In Naples, Zones A And B have been evacuated. Those are areas closest along the coast and also the area that is most prone to Storm Surge. So, again, officials here warning people to be safe, prepare and get out. We hear that rain already falling, we know flooding is another major concern with this storm. Dana griffin, thanks for bringing us the latest from naples. Joining us now is jodie fiske, director of Public Safety for manatee county, florida, which issued mandatory Evacuation Orders for some residents. Thank you for joining us. A State Senator said this, quote, evacuate, there is no tomorrow if you are caught in the midst of this storm. Are people heeding these warnings . They are. We have seen we had no resistance from our responders doing Door To door knocks to say, you know, you got to go. Were taking steps, were shutting power down to the Barrier Islands as well as water ahead of this storm. So, 10 to 15 foot Storm Surge. Thats a life threatening Storm Surge. So far we have just over 1100 people that have come to our shelters, more are coming. It is critical that people listen to these Evacuation Orders. It feels like the warnings cannot be overstated. What do you say to people who say they can hunker down and Ride The Storm Out . Dont. It really is just that simple. This is Storm Surge is not rising floodwaters that some people think they are, it is a force. And our teams are doing the very best they can to get the debris up off the road, we know there is going to be some left and the force of the surge, it is not worth the risk. You can replace things in your home, but you can do not replace your life. Backtoback hurricanes, hurricane force, Now Milton, still a significant amount of debris on some roads from the last storm, including appliances, metal, wood, all of that, how does that complicate preparations as you all prepare here for milton. It is an additional step to get the debris off the road. Our County Teams have been working around the clock, the state of florida sent an entire contingent of folks down here to assist with that, the National Guard is assisting with it. It is a danger, there are things On The Road that would norm not normally be there before a storm, just due to the damage that we saw with helene. So, crews are working as hard as they can to get it up off the green. Theyll get as much as they can out, but it is a concern about the projectiles and the high winds. The region around tampa is home to more than 3 Million people. It is one of the most vulnerable metropolitan areas in the u. S. To Storm Surge. You talked about how that is the greatest risk for a lot of residents in your area. Can you speak more about that Storm Surge threat. How far inland could this Storm Surge push . We have a lot of our teams working on the map for that, we get the information from the national weather service. I would anticipate it would go further inland than we saw with helene. But due to the fact that the Island Topography changed a bit with the damage done by helene with that Storm Surge, so, you know, there is a reason that we went to levels a, b and c. So, when that surge comes in, it really is a force. It is not it is not one you can fight back against. Jodie fiske, thanks again for taking the time with us. Good luck in the days ahead. Thank you. And now to the White House, where we are awaiting remarks from President Biden expected in just the next few minutes. He just received a briefing on the federal response to these historic storms, first Hurricane Helene and now Hurricane Milton. Nbcs Aaron Gilchrist is standing by for us at the White House. What are we expecting to hear from the president . Reporter the president has been receiving updates today, both from his national Security Team and we know now hes supposed to be in this meeting getting this update on the federal response To Fema to the disaster that is already happening in several southern states, but also the hurricane that is coming in toward florida. And i think we can expect to hear the president say when he speaks today, first of all, that people should pay attention, listen to what theyre hearing from local Emergency Officials on the ground. They are the first line for these sorts of incidents. We talk often about fema and the federal Government Response and the president s response, but the reality is the local emergency managers, the State Emergency managers are running the show. Fema comes in when theyre asked to help with dealing with the recovery, if you will, from these sorts of storms. To that end, we know from fema that they have prepositioned resources on the ground for Hurricane Milton, once that storm makes landfall. There are urban Search And Rescue teams that have been prepositioned. There are ambulances and high water vehicles by the hundreds that have been prepositioned for Hurricane Milton. There is Food And Water by the millions that have been prepositioned as well. And so i think the president will say that fema and the federal government are ready to step in as soon as they are asked to, to help with the Response And Recovery effort that will be a lengthy and expensive one after Hurricane Milton makes landfall. The president is expected to speak in front of the cameras in the next few minutes here, ana, about how the federal government is trying to help local and state governments deal with this hurricane. Okay, Aaron Gilchrist, stay close. Well take the remarks as soon as the president speaks, thank you. Ill talk to the mayor of Fort Myerses as they brace for the impact of milton. And Ron Desantis declines a call from Vice President harris over hurricane aid. Is he playing politics . Then, as Recovery Efforts intensify in North Carolina, is there is more than debris to grapple with there. There is misinformation, a lot of it. How it is creating a new hurdle for fema. 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