Ex-Dublin Mayor says 'no point in fighting Mother Nature' and flees Florida home as Hurricane Milton closes in
Royston Brady emigrated to the United States with his family in 2012
Former Lord Mayor of Dublin Royston Brady has said 'there is no point in fighting Mother Nature' as he and his family flee their Florida home ahead of Hurricane Milton.
Today the hurricane was updated to a Category 5 storm as it churns towards Florida’s west coast.
The Tampa Bay area, home to more than 3.3 million people, faces the possibility of widespread destruction when Milton makes land.
READ MORE: When will Hurricane Milton hit Florida and what path is 'storm of the century' on
Royston, who emigrated to the United States with his family in 2012 and works in the hospitality sector, said the hotel group he works for has kept one property open in Miami - where they’ve seen a mass exodus of people arrive from evacuated areas along the west coast of Florida.
He and his family have also been evacuated from their Florida home to a hotel during what he says is “so worrying.”
“We’ve moved into a hotel and whatever we come back to, we come back to,” Royston told RTE 1’s Today with Claire Byrne Show on Wednesday.
“I take the view that anything in the house can be replaced. We are in a flood area. There is a mandatory state of emergency being announced throughout Florida at the moment, which is very unique. You usually see it in targeted areas but this time round it's across the whole State, It’s so worrying,” he said.
He said preparations have been made to his home with sandbags around the property and hurricane proof windows in place.
“But,” he said, “at a time like this you are fighting against Mother Nature so within the next 24 hours, it could pivot slightly, it could come down towards the South, it could shift. But hopefully it could maintain the track that it’s on. Unfortunately for anyone living out towards Sarasota, Tampa district, it could be really devastating.
“But from our perspective, we have gone through this so many times before, you could come back and the house could be ok, it could be under water. But the best thing to do is just evacuate when you get a notification,” Royston said.
READ MORE: Ireland weather: 'Indian summer' hopes raised as Met Eireann forecast final 2024 heat burst
Meanwhile, up to 70 Irish people who are on holidays in coastal areas of Florida at present have been moved to central Florida to take them out of the path of Hurricane Milton.
Irish travel company American Holidays said the majority of the Irish tourists - who are mostly couples - were based in Orlando. “The majority of them are based in Orlando at the moment,” Bladhana Richardson told RTE Radio 1's Today with Claire Byrne show.
“Anyone who has been on the coast, we have moved into central Florida. So away from the known affected areas and it is mainly couples at the moment. We do have some families, but as it’s outside of school holidays, thankfully there's less families travelling at the moment.”
“We're in constant contact with them. We have been moving their bookings if we need to move them. We've been giving them updates and asking them to do practical things like keep their phones charged and follow the guidance of the hotels where they'll be staying.
“All of those hotels and parks are fully equipped to deal with known hurricanes, so follow local advice.”
Ms Richardson said tourists who were scheduled to travel to the Tampa area on Wednesday and Thursday have been contacted, and their travel plans are being rearranged.
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