See Hurricane Michael storm hunters fly straight into its eye
Air Force pilots share a grim inside look at the monster storm threatening Florida's Gulf Coast.
- Co-author of two Gen X pop-culture encyclopedia for Penguin Books. Won "Headline Writer of the Year" award for 2017, 2014 and 2013 from the American Copy Editors Society. Won first place in headline writing from the 2013 Society for Features Journalism.
Hamilton fans know the lyric: "In the eye of a hurricane, there is quiet/for just a moment."
US Air Force Reserve Pilot Will Simmons experienced that quiet Wednesday morning, and it's just as eerie as in Alexander Hamilton's day. Simmons was flying a USAF Hurricane Hunter mission out of Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi, and after multiple passes through the eye, finally had enough daylight to see the massive storm.
"Life-threatening effects are imminent along parts of the Florida panhandle," he wrote in a tweet sharing a video of that brief moment in the eye.
On our 6th pass through the eye of Category 4 Hurricane Michael, we @53rdWRS had daylight to witness what has been greatly intensifying over the past few days. Life-threatening effects are imminent along parts of the Florida panhandle. @NHC_Atlantic will have the latest. pic.twitter.com/QqdlYzhenj
— Will Simmons (@wrsimmons) October 10, 2018
Monstrous clouds surround the plane like walls as the crew flies through and records the video.
"I love the job, but at the same time, hate that I had to go out to fly this today," Simmons wrote. "Extremely powerful hurricane."
I love the job, but at the same time, hate that I had to go out to fly this today. Extremely powerful hurricane.
— Will Simmons (@wrsimmons) October 10, 2018
Hurricane Michael made landfall in Florida Wednesday morning as a category 4 storm that the New York Times called "frighteningly powerful."
"This is the worst storm that our Florida Panhandle has seen in a century," Florida Gov. Rick Scott said. "Hurricane Michael is upon us, and now is the time to seek refuge."
The National Weather Service issued a chilling message Wednesday morning. "Landfall of #HurricaneMichael is imminent," the organization tweeted. "THIS IS A WORST CASE SCENARIO for the Florida Panhandle!!"
Landfall of #HurricaneMichael is imminent. THIS IS A WORST CASE SCENARIO for the Florida Panhandle!! Listen to your local emergency officials. Stay Inside & Survive!" --NWS Director Dr. Louis Uccellini @NWSDirector pic.twitter.com/EMSZbMaHwW
— NWS (@NWS) October 10, 2018
Webcams in Florida are also recording the storm activity, though intensifying conditions could force them offline.
