Hurricane Milton dumped so much rain on parts of Florida’s Tampa Bay area that it was classified as a once-in-1,000-year rainfall event.
The government said 18.31 inches, or more than 1.5 feet, of rain fell in St. Petersburg in the 24 hours the storm made landfall. Precipitation data from the National Weather Service.
This includes a whopping 5.09 inches in one hour from 8:00 PM to 9:00 PM ET. This level is believed to have an approximately 0.1% chance of occurring in any given year.
“This is insane! St. Petersburg reported 5.09 inches of rain in one hour and 9.04 inches in three hours,” said Matthew Cappucci, Atmospheric Scientist and Senior Meteorologist at MyRadar Weather. states.Posted on Wednesday by X. “That’s rarer than a once-in-a-millennium rain event.”
Milton made landfall near Siesta Key as a strong Category 3 storm Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. ET.
Other significant precipitation amounts across Florida include 14.01 inches in Clearwater Beach, 13.09 inches in Baskin, 11.43 inches in Tampa, and 10.12 inches in Seminole.
Scientists have not yet completed their analysis of the impact on Milton because it takes time to understand the effects of climate change on individual weather events. But in general, experts know that global warming is making storms wetter and more intense.
Research shows that global warming causes sea surface temperatures to rise, which provides extra energy to storms, increasing their speed and intensity. The unusually high sea surface temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico that strengthened hurricanes Milton and Helen are 200 to 500 times more likely to be caused by climate change, according to a study released Wednesday. It is said that
The warmer the atmosphere, the more water it can hold. For every 1 degree Fahrenheit increase in Earth’s temperature, the atmosphere can hold about 3% to 4% more water. Therefore, storms can dump large amounts of rain on land.
Milton’s heavy rains quickly flooded roads, homes, and other structures along the Florida Gulf Coast. The National Weather Service issued a flash flood emergency for Tampa and St. Petersburg, which lasted until 2:30 a.m. ET Thursday.
Forecasters expected heavy rain as Milton moved into Florida. Hours before landfall, the National Hurricane Center said it expected 6 to 12 inches of rain to fall across the central and northern Florida peninsula through Thursday, with local rainfall totals up to 18 inches.
The east coast of Florida is also experiencing rain. Preliminary measurements Wednesday showed 7 inches of precipitation in St. Augustine, 7.38 inches in Titusville, and 3.05 inches in Daytona Beach, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Hurricane Milton has returned to the ocean, but additional rain and flooding is expected to continue into parts of eastern and central Florida through Thursday, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Source: www.nbcnews.com
