Florida
Milton strengthens into a major hurricane. Florida prepares for large-scale evacuations
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Milton strengthened into a major hurricane Monday on a path toward Florida population centers including Tampa and Orlando, threatening a dangerous storm surge in Tampa Bay and setting the stage for potential mass evacuations less than two weeks after a catastrophic Hurricane Helene swamped the coastline.
Milton grew into a Category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 125 mph (205 kph) over the southern Gulf of Mexico. Storm surge and hurricane watches were issued for Florida’s Gulf Coast, and a hurricane warning was issued for parts of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula.
The storm was expected to strengthen into an extremely dangerous Category 4 hurricane later Monday, with winds of at least 130 mph (210 kph), and stay at that strength for the next couple of days, the National Hurricane Center said. Helene was also a Category 4 at landfall in northern Florida.
The most likely scenario would have Milton’s center come ashore Wednesday in the Tampa Bay area and the storm remain a hurricane as it moves across central Florida toward the Atlantic Ocean, forecasters said. That would largely spare other states ravaged by Helene, which killed at least 230 people on its path from northern Florida to the Appalachian Mountains.
Milton’s center was about 165 miles (265 kilometers) west-northwest of Progreso, Mexico, and about 745 miles (1,195 kilometers) west-southwest of Tampa early Monday, moving east-southeast at 8 mph (13 kph), according to the hurricane center.
Milton is a bit atypical since it formed so far west and is expected to cross the entire southern Gulf, according to Daniel Brown, a hurricane specialist at the center.
“It’s not uncommon to get a hurricane threat in October along the west coast of Florida, but forming all the way in the southwest Gulf and then striking Florida is a little bit more unusual,” Brown said. Most storms that form in October and hit Florida come from the Caribbean, not the southwestern Gulf, he said.
Forecasters warned of a possible 8- to 12-foot storm surge (2.4 to 3.6 meters) in Tampa Bay and said flash and river flooding could result from 5 to 10 inches (13 to 25 centimeters) of rain in mainland Florida and the Keys, with as much as 15 inches (38 centimeters) in places.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Sunday that while it remains to be seen where Milton will strike, it’s clear the state is going to be hit hard.
“You have time to prepare — all day today, all day Monday, probably all day Tuesday to be sure your hurricane preparedness plan is in place,” DeSantis said. “If you’re on that west coast of Florida, barrier islands, just assume you’ll be asked to leave.”
About 7 million people were urged to evacuate Florida in 2017 as Hurricane Irma bore down. The exodus jammed freeways, led to long lines at gas stations and left evacuees in some cases vowing never to evacuate again.
Building on lessons learned during Irma and other previous storms, Florida is staging emergency fuel for gas vehicles and charging stations for electric vehicles along evacuation routes, Kevin Guthrie, executive director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management, said Sunday.
“We are preparing … for the largest evacuation that we have seen, most likely since 2017, Hurricane Irma,” Guthrie said.
The Tampa Bay area is still cleaning up extensive damage from Helene and its powerful surge. Twelve people perished as Helene swamped the coast, with the worst damage along the narrow, 20-mile (32-kilometer) string of barrier islands that stretch from St. Petersburg to Clearwater.
DeSantis expanded his state of emergency declaration Sunday to 51 counties and said Floridians should prepare for more power outages and disruption, making sure they have a week’s worth of food and water and are ready to hit the road.
People who live in homes built after Florida strengthened codes in 2004, who don’t depend on constant electricity and who aren’t in evacuation zones should probably avoid the roads, Guthrie said.
All classes and school activities in Pinellas County, home to St. Petersburg, closed preemptively Monday through Wednesday. Officials in Tampa freed all city garages to residents hoping to protect their cars from flooding, including electric vehicles. The vehicles must be left on the third floor or higher in each garage.
As many as 4,000 National Guard troops are helping state crews to remove debris, DeSantis said, and he directed Florida crews dispatched to North Carolina in Helene’s aftermath to return in preparation for Milton.
When Milton achieved hurricane status, it marked the first time there have been three hurricanes swirling simultaneously in the Atlantic, said Colorado State University hurricane scientist Phil Klotzbach. Hurricanes Leslie and Kirk were far out at sea and not immediately threatening land.
Florida
Tallahassee gas prices rise due to Iran war; how to find cheapest pump prices
If you’re kicking yourself for not filling up your vehicle over the weekend or earlier this week, you have good reason.
Gas prices have been going up steadily — sometimes sharply — since the U.S.-Israeli strikes in Iran started Saturday, Feb. 28.
In Tallahassee, prices have jumped 26 cents from last week with an average gallon of gas currently sitting at $3.08, according to AAA. The highest price on record in Florida’s capital city was $4.84 a gallon in June 2022.
Since Monday, March 2, Florida gas prices have jumped almost 36 cents for a gallon of regular, according to AAA.
The war is spreading throughout the Middle East and at least six U.S. soldiers have been killed, including one from Florida.
➤ Live updates: Senate won’t check Trump’s war
Here’s what you should know as the war with Iran continues.
Florida not alone in worrying about rising gas prices
Gas prices surge as Iran war closes Strait of Hormuz
Gas prices rise as Iran closes the Strait of Hormuz threatening oil supply and raising fears of global economic fallout.
Gas prices were already rising before the attacks on Iran began Feb. 28. It’s a regular seasonal swing as spring arrives, according to AAA.
➤ Americans fret over gas prices as Iran war widens
Iran has retaliated with missile and drone attacks that have now killed at least six U.S. servicemembers, including one from Florida.
➤ Florida Army Reserve captain killed in Iran war
Analysts said the war will likely drive up prices by an additional 20 to 30 cents per gallon, partly due to supply issues and partly due to global uncertainty.
Here’s a look at gas prices per gallon of regular provided by AAA this week:
- March 5: $3.251
- March 4: $3.19
- March 3: $3.061
Compare to:
- Week ago: $2.983
- Month ago: $2.891
- Year ago: $3.107
What’s average price of gas in Florida?
AAA posted the average price in Florida on March 5 was $3.241, slightly less than the national average of $3.251.
Here’s a comparison of the daily average price of a gallon of regular this week as provided by AAA:
- March 5: $3.241
- March 4: $3.198
- March 3: $3.068
- March 2: $2.883
In comparison:
- Week ago average: $2.940
- Month ago average: $2.882
- Year ago average: $3.084
Will Florida gas prices keep going up?
The national average price of gas is “likely to move toward $3.10 to $3.15 (per gallon) within one to two weeks … and to $3.20 to $3.25 within two to three weeks,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis with GasBuddy, on March 1.
On March 2, DeHaan said he expected gas prices “at average stations” nationally to increase by 10 to 30 cents in the coming week.
President Trump: Oil prices may be high ‘for a little while’
President Donald Trump told reporters March 3 oil prices may be high “for a little while.”
As soon as the war ends, “these prices are going to drop, I believe even lower than before,” Trump said.
In a post on TruthSocial March 3, Trump said: “If necessary, the United States Navy will begin escorting tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, as soon as possible. No matter what, the United States will ensure the FREE FLOW of ENERGY to the WORLD.”
How can you find the cheapest gas?
Whether you’re traveling or at home, gasbuddy.com offers information to find the cheapest prices for gasoline.
Enter your state, city or ZIP code to find the Top 10 gas stations and cheap fuel prices.
Cheryl McCloud is a journalist for the USA TODAY Network-Florida’s service journalism Connect team. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday day by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY, at https://palmbeachpost.com/newsletters.
Florida
Florida college Republicans group chat reveals racist texts: ‘Avoid the coloreds like the plague’
It only took three weeks for a group chat for conservative students at Florida International University (FIU) to become a place where participants eagerly used racist slurs, prompting widespread condemnation from community leaders.
Abel Alexander Carvajal, secretary of Miami-Dade county’s Republican party and a student at FIU’s College of Law, reportedly started the chat after the killing of Charlie Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA, in September 2025.
But on Wednesday, the Miami Herald published leaked WhatsApp conversations in which the college Republicans made racist, sexist, antisemitic and homophobic comments, including variations of the N-word used more than 400 times. Knowledge of the chat’s existence was revealed on the same day that Republican lawmakers in Florida pushed forward a bill to rename a one-mile stretch of road alongside FIU in honor of Kirk.
William Bejerano, who the Herald noted once tried to start an anti-abortion group at Miami Dade College, was the most prolific user of the N-word. Using the slur, Bejerano called for dozens of acts of extreme violence against Black people, including crucifying, beheading and dissecting.
Dariel Gonzalez, then the College Republicans’ recruitment chair, who has recently applied to become a GOP committee member, responded to the calls for violence by saying: “How edgy.” He repeatedly used “colored” to describe Black people, including writing: “Ew you had colored professors?!” and “Avoid the coloreds like the plague,” according to the Herald.
Carvajal, who was appointed to a two-year role on the city of Hialeah’s planning and zoning board earlier this year, confirmed to the paper that the group chat was his doing, but he denied knowledge of the problematic comments until the publication contacted him about its logs last week.
“It’s been five months since this was sent and this is the first time I’ve seen this message,” Carvajal told the Herald.
“I guess to an extent, I bear some responsibility, cause I created a chat. But if I had seen this at the moment, I would have removed [Bejerano] from the chat. I probably would have even blocked his number.”
The Herald found that Carvajal had deleted 14 messages sent by other participants in the chat and 42 of his own messages before the publication obtained the chat’s logs.
He also participated in some of the racist discussions. While referring to a Black student who allegedly left FIU’s College Republicans after a member of the group “called her a [N-word]”, the Floridian reported that Carvajal wrote: “Why didn’t miggress leave?” Elsewhere in the chat, the publication reported that Carvajal used “Miggress”, “Migglet” and “Migger” to refer to Black women, Black children and Black people, in general.
At one point, Gonzalez wrote: “You can fuck all the [K-word, a slur for Jewish people] you want. Just don’t marry them and procreate.”
Ian Valdes, the Turning Point USA FIU chapter president, responded, “I would def not marry a Jew,” before changing the group chat’s name from “Uber [R-word slur for disabled people] Yapping” to “Gooning in Agartha”. “Gooning” is a gen-Z slang term for male masturbation, while “Agartha” is a mythical white civilization promoted by Heinrich Himmler, one of the most powerful leaders in Nazi Germany next to Hitler.
Gonzalez reportedly described Agartha to the group chat as “Nazi heaven sort of”.
Kevin Cooper, the first Jewish chair of the Miami Dade Republican party, condemned the group chat in a statement published to X and called for Carvajal’s resignation.
“The majority of our board voted to request Carvajal’s resignation. We have commenced removal proceedings and look forward to resolution from the Republican Party of Florida,” he wrote.
That call was echoed by Juan Porras, a Republican state representative and Miami-Dade GOP state committee member, who said in a statement: “Leadership carries responsibility. When someone in a leadership role engages in this kind of behavior, it damages the trust placed in our party by voters across Florida. For that reason, I am asking the Miami Dade Republican party secretary to step down from this position.”
In a joint statement, Florida Republican state senators Alexis Calatayud, Ileana Garcia and Ana Maria Rodriguez denounced the chats and called for the expulsion from party leadership of its participants.
“The individuals in the group chat have exposed how profoundly misaligned their beliefs are to the views of the Republican party of Florida,” their statement said. “We call for the immediate expulsion of the individuals disseminating from any level of leadership of the Miami-Dade Republican Party … We will not tolerate bigotry or discrimination.”
Multiple leaked group chats from young Republicans have created controversy in recent years.
Last year, Politico published messages from a group chat of more than 100 conservatives across the country in which users also made racist and antisemitic comments. In 2022, a Young Republican group chat from North Dakota was revealed as a cesspool of homophobic and antisemitic rhetoric.
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