As of Tuesday afternoon, Manatee County Jail has no plans to evacuate its roughly 1,200 inmates, despite state and local officials urging Florida residents to follow evacuation orders in preparation for Hurricane Milton's approach.
On Tuesday, Hurricane Milton was classified as a Category 4 storm, with maximum sustained winds reaching 155 miles per hour, just 2 mph short of Category 5 status, according to CBS.
A Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office spokesperson said Orient Road Jail, a facility located in mandatory evacuation Zone A, is transporting inmates to Falkenburg Road Jail in evacuation Zone E, which is equipped to sustain the storm, according to Florida Politics.
"We do not issue evacuation orders lightly," Manatee County Public Safety Director Jodie Fiske said. "Milton is anticipated to cause more storm surge than Helene. So, if you stayed during Helene and got lucky, I would not press my luck with this particular system."
The deputy also revealed that the jail hadn't previously experienced flooding to that degree before. In addition to the inmates, Deputies will stay at the facility throughout the storm.
