Jay Kelley (left) and his wife Jo Bennett help Briny Breezes resident Holly McCarthy secure the clam-shell shutters on her home in Briny Breezes. Lily the dog is an evacuee from Tampa who is staying with Kelley and Bennett during Hurricane Milton. Palm Beach County announced the mandatory evacuation of mobile and manufactured homes effective noon Wednesday, Oct. 9, in anticipation of the storm. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star
By Rich Pollack
With Hurricane Milton zeroing in on Florida, Palm Beach County residents living in manufactured or mobile homes — including those in Briny Breezes — have been ordered to seek shelter elsewhere by county leaders.
An evacuation order, announced Tuesday afternoon, comes as the county remains under a tropical storm warning and flood watch, with the potential for sustained winds of between 30 mph and 40 mph and gusts of between 50 mph and 60 mph.
The mandate goes into effect at noon Wednesday.
The order from county leaders was all that was needed to persuade Briny Breezes resident Holly McCarthy to fasten her shutters and flee to Lake Worth Beach where she will stay with a friend.
“She wasn’t going to leave until they told her it was mandatory,” said friend Jo Bennett. Bennett and her husband, Jay Kelley, helped McCarthy prepare to leave.
In Briny Breezes, town leaders have sent information to residents encouraging evacuation but adding that police will not force anyone to leave.
“But if you choose to stay you have to remember that emergency personnel may not be able to get to you until conditions clear,” the notification to residents said. “That’s why it’s important to follow these orders.”
Should there be a tornado warning, the town is urging resident who stay to shelter in one of a handful of bathhouses in the park because they are more secure than the community’s mobile homes.
Palm Beach County will be opening five general population shelters, a pet-friendly shelter and a special needs shelter on Wednesday at noon.
For residents of Briny Breezes, the nearest general population shelter will be at at Park Vista High School at 7900 Jog Road, west of Lake Worth Beach.
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