10/08/2024

Officials Expect Florida's Coastline to Change amid Hurricane Milton

The storm may leave a long-term scar

Year after year, Florida's 825-miles of sandy beaches have been devoured by hurricanes. As Hurricane Milton barrels toward Tampa and the Gulf Coast, piling onto the damage from Hurricane Helene, officials warn of "severe" levels of coastal change.

"The significance of the coastal change forecast for Milton's impact to the Florida west coast cannot be overstated as I believe communities are more vulnerable to this storm's impacts due to the erosion that occurred recently from Helene," said Kara Doran, a United States Geological Survey supervisory physical scientist who works on the coastal change forecast.

Most of the state's west coast experienced overwash or inundation and complete erosion of dunes as a result of September's Hurricane Helene, leaving coastal communities with less protection than before, according to Doran.

Please select this link to read the complete article from ABC News.