Hurricane Milton has rapidly intensified from a tropical storm to a Category 5 hurricane. This happened in just over 24 hours—it’s one of the fastest rates of strengthening ever observed on Earth. Meteorologists [have even begun to speculate](https://x.com/webberweather/status/1843282756266287549) that Milton could approach the theoretical maximum intensity for a hurricane in the Atlantic basin of 195 mph, challenging the record set by Hurricane Allen in 1980.
But this hurricane isn’t even happening in isolation. The one-two punch from Helene and Milton is what climatologists call a “compound event.” With little to no time to prepare between landfalls, human misery becomes greater than the sum of the two storms separately. It’s something that was highlighted as a symptom of climate change in [the most recent National Climate Assessment](https://nca2023.globalchange.gov/chapter/focus-on-1/) published by the Biden administration last year. As sea level rises and floods become more frequent, folks in Tampa [are already fearing](https://www.tampabay.com/hurricane/2024/10/04/how-will-hurricane-helene-reshape-tampa-bays-housing-market/) the effect of a further rise in housing costs that this year’s storm season will likely bring.
My sister moved there to escape the cold weather of New Jersey last year. Luckily(?) they didn’t purchase a house yet.
milton has been winding up like a looney tunes character at a bowling alley and tampa bay is the pins
Friends in Tampa are evacuating now to ATL. I’m in NC and we’re calling Gov. Roy Cooper to try to get a rent freeze for Asheville and the surrounding hurricane stricken area that’s still reeling from Helene. This is wild.
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Hurricane Milton has rapidly intensified from a tropical storm to a Category 5 hurricane. This happened in just over 24 hours—it’s one of the fastest rates of strengthening ever observed on Earth. Meteorologists [have even begun to speculate](https://x.com/webberweather/status/1843282756266287549) that Milton could approach the theoretical maximum intensity for a hurricane in the Atlantic basin of 195 mph, challenging the record set by Hurricane Allen in 1980.
But this hurricane isn’t even happening in isolation. The one-two punch from Helene and Milton is what climatologists call a “compound event.” With little to no time to prepare between landfalls, human misery becomes greater than the sum of the two storms separately. It’s something that was highlighted as a symptom of climate change in [the most recent National Climate Assessment](https://nca2023.globalchange.gov/chapter/focus-on-1/) published by the Biden administration last year. As sea level rises and floods become more frequent, folks in Tampa [are already fearing](https://www.tampabay.com/hurricane/2024/10/04/how-will-hurricane-helene-reshape-tampa-bays-housing-market/) the effect of a further rise in housing costs that this year’s storm season will likely bring.
For more from meteorologist Eric Holthaus: [https://slate.com/technology/2024/10/hurricane-milton-tampa-bay-disaster-category-five.html](https://slate.com/technology/2024/10/hurricane-milton-tampa-bay-disaster-category-five.html)
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My sister moved there to escape the cold weather of New Jersey last year. Luckily(?) they didn’t purchase a house yet.
milton has been winding up like a looney tunes character at a bowling alley and tampa bay is the pins
Friends in Tampa are evacuating now to ATL. I’m in NC and we’re calling Gov. Roy Cooper to try to get a rent freeze for Asheville and the surrounding hurricane stricken area that’s still reeling from Helene. This is wild.