Florida Residents Travel North Ahead of Hurricane Milton's Arrival

WILSON COUNTY, NC (WITN) – Traffic was heavy for Florida residents traveling north to get out of the path of Hurricane Milton.

Eastern North Carolina has become a stopping point for many Floridians leaving the state, as hotels have limited availability from Georgia to South Carolina.

Before Hurricane Milton made landfall as a Category 3 storm, state officials urged millions of people to evacuate and prepare for destruction and flash flooding.

Jason Plucinik is an Orlando, Florida resident who packed an RV and headed out the Tuesday before Hurricane Milton hit with his family to avoid getting caught in the storm.

He stopped in North Carolina on his way north to refuel and buy food.

“We left earlier than anticipated because of the impact the storm will have on travel,” he said. “With a trailer, the wind will blow that thing all over the place. Heavy rain, heavy traffic, trying to get out and find some accommodation, be it fuel. The restaurants are probably packed too, I just wanted to be ahead of everything.”

Plucinik said he left on Tuesday hoping to avoid traffic, but got stuck in heavy traffic jams leaving Florida and even while driving through Georgia.

He said traffic finally started to slow down when he reached South and North Carolina.

With Hurricane Helene making landfall in parts of Florida, Plucinik said he is prepared for Hurricane Milton. Watching his home through circular cameras, even when he’s away.

“I actually have one pointed directly at my pool because the big concern is that the water will cause it to overflow,” he said. “Who knows how high it could get in our house, so we have that monitor with a pump inside the pool that is controlled by my app in case we need to turn it on.”