SUMTER COUNTY, Fla. – Rain and winds are picking up in Sumter County as Hurricane Milton makes landfall in Florida on Wednesday evening, downing trees and blocking some roads.
Milton officially made landfall near Siesta Key as a Category 3 hurricane around 8:30 p.m., according to the National Hurricane Center.
News 6 investigator Mike DeForest is on the ground in The Villages reporting as many residents shelter at home.
[RELATED: Track Milton: Cone, models, more | COUNTY-BY-COUNTY: Central Fla. impacts | TIMELINE: Milton in Central Florida | Here’s where Milton ranks among strongest Atlantic hurricanes Milton’s ‘dirty side’ is different | What do evacuation zones mean? | Download the FREE News 6 hurricane app]
“Sumter County officials have been telling people who live in The Villages to shelter in place at home. that’s because so many of these homes are newer and built with the modern hurricane building codes, so they believe the buildings will be safe,” DeForest said. “In The Villages themselves there isn’t an extreme concern about flooding, but as you expand out into the rest of Sumter County, there are flooding concerns.”
Officials in Sumter County said that although their shelters are open, many are filling up, with the shelter at the fairgrounds “considered full as of 6 p.m. on Wednesday.”
News 6 meteorologists expect the worst weather for Sumter County to be late Wednesday, heading into Thursday afternoon with winds between 30-45 mph and gusts between 50-70 mph. Rainfall estimates may be anywhere from 5 to 10 inches.
Around 8 p.m., Sumter County officials posted on social media saying that downed trees are starting to block roads in the Bushnell area.
Although officials didn’t specify where the downed trees were, the following roads were blocked:
- CR 476, Bushnell
- CR 607, Bushnell
- CR 622, Bushnell
- CR 555, Bushnell
- Broad Street, Bushnell
- CR 740, Webster
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