CNN’s Anderson Cooper was caught on camera getting ‘smacked in the face by debris’ while live reporting on Hurricane Milton.
Yesterday (October 9), Hurricane Milton made landfall measuring as a category three storm on the Saffir-Simpson Wind Scale, bringing tornadoes and 28ft waves.
And live reporting out in the open in Siesta Key, Florida was CNN anchor Anderson Cooper who battled 120 mph winds during the broadcast.
One clip shows the moment he gets hit in the face by a piece of flying debris.
Briefly acknowledging the incident, Cooper said: “Woah! That wasn’t good. We’ll probably go inside shortly.”
However, he then swiftly carries on.
And it’s not taken long for people to flood to Twitter to weigh in.
A piece of debris hit Anderson Cooper in the face (CNN)
One Twitter user said: “What does putting Anderson Cooper on a pier in the middle of the ocean at the height of a hurricane in its center achieve in informing viewers. It’s like 120mph winds. Get my sweet porcelain glass anchor inside.”
“Someone rescue Anderson Cooper from CNN. #HurricaneMilton,” another added.
A third questioned: “Why is Anderson Cooper out in Milton trying to be Jim Cantore, and why did he get smacked in the face by debris?”
“The moment Anderson Cooper gets hit by flying debris in Bradenton, FL. WTF,” a fourth wrote.
However, one user added: “I’ve been informed by multiple people he is a vet in live storm coverage especially for Katrina, so I looked into it and yeaa imma just shut up real quick.”
UNILAD has contacted CNN for comment.
And it wasn’t just Cooper who ended up being the only reporter to feel the wrath of the storm.
Hurricane Milton is currently classified as a category one storm (CNN)
Another CNN reporter Bill Weir ended up losing his hat to the hurricane and The Weather Channel meteorologist Jim Cantore was forced to take shelter from the storm.
While Hurricane Milton has since weakened to a category one on the scale, it is still set to be ‘one of the most destructive hurricanes on record for west-central Florida,’ the National Hurricane Center reports.
What’s more, experts have even questioned whether there should be a category six or new scale to measure storms given Hurricane Milton reaching the top end of the Saffir-Simpson Wind Scale.
Less than a fortnight after Hurricane Helene hit, Hurricane Milton has followed swiftly in its path.
If you get sea sick, you should probably look away.
By the time it made landfall in Florida yesterday (October 9), the storm was classified as category three, stated as consisting of ‘winds [going at] 111-129 mph (96-112 kt or 178-208 km/hr)’ where ‘devastating damage will occur’.
“Well-built framed homes may incur major damage or removal of roof decking and gable ends. Many trees will be snapped or uprooted, blocking numerous roads. Electricity and water will be unavailable for several days to weeks after the storm passes,” the Saffir-Simpson scale states.
And it was yesterday when Hurricane Milton was at a category three when a drone managed to capture the storm’s effects on an area of sea in the Gulf of Mexico, ’40 nautical miles from the center of the storm’.
The footage was taken 40 nautical miles from the center of the hurricane (Twitter/ @NOAA_AOML)
NOAA Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Lab and Saildrone captured footage of the impact of the storm on the waves, reporting Hurricane Milton’s wind gusts were measuring ‘as strong as 75.95 mph’.
NOAA Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Lab shared the clip to Twitter, explaining: “This research represents a collaborative endeavor to better understand the role of the ocean in hurricanes.”
And the footage is enough to make even the most sea-experienced among us queasy, it not taking long for people to flood to the post to weigh in.
Damage caused by Hurricane Milton (CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty Images)
A Twitter user said: “Wow.”
“Wtf 28ft tall wave?!” another added.
A third commented: “I’m getting seasick from seeing this.”
“Pretty cool that one of these lil guys is out there, capturing data, doing his job, weathering one of the biggest storms and helping ppl understand whats comjng. Thanks Saildrone and NOAA!!” a fourth wrote.
A fifth said: “Love the fact an UNmanned craft can go into dangerous places and study the effects and science of things we still need to study.”
And a sixth said: “This is insane! Be safe, Florida!”
Florida residents have been urged to evacuate with NWS Tampa Bay warning residents to treat the extreme winds ‘as if a tornado was approaching’.
Florida’s Martin Country Fire Rescue estimates ‘dozens of homes’ have already been damaged ‘some severely,’ urging people to ‘stay off roads’.
Currently barreling toward the Florida Peninsula, Hurricane Milton recently regained its Category 5 strength earlier this evening as millions evacuate expected vulnerable areas and prepare for the incoming storm.
The National Hurricane Center said Milton presents an ‘extremely life-threatening situation’ for the western coast of Florida, with one of the center’s specialists John Cangialosi warning: “Milton has the potential to be one of the most destructive hurricanes on record for west-central Florida.”
As the National Hurricane Center announced that storm surges are expected to occur along parts of Florida’s west coast tomorrow, The Weather Channel released a simulation earlier today anticipating what the surge might look like in the Tampa Bay Area where storm surges are expected to hit ‘a record-setting surge over 9 feet’.
Using FloodFX simulation technology, The Weather Channel’s meteorologist Stephanie Abrams demonstrated what a 9 feet surge will look like in the Tampa Bay Area.
Florida residents have been evacuating (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
As animated water rose behind her, Abrams explained: “At 3 feet above normally dry ground, water is already life-threatening. It’s too late to evacuate.
“Water this high can knock you off your feet, make cars float, and driving impossible. The first floor of homes and businesses are flooded.
“Unfortunately the water is expected to rise even higher at 6 feet, above the height of most people. Vehicles get carried away, structures start to fail,” Abrams continued.
“Anything can be in this water, sharp glass, debris, chemicals as well.”
Users on Twitter described the simulation as ‘terrifying,’ with some urging local residents to evacuate if they haven’t already.
“Flood simulation to show how high the storm surge from Hurricane Milton could get. This is a wake up call to leave if you haven’t already,” one user wrote.
The simulation captures what a 9 foot surge looks like (Twitter/The Weather Channel)
“I got claustrophobic just watching it,” another added.
Another noted, “That visualization is showing static water, no movement. The surge will have 9 foot swells and water levels with FORCE.”
Hot on the heels of Hurricane Helene – a category five hurricane – Hurricane Milton is set to hit parts of Florida today (October 9).
The hurricane could pose a risk to people’s lives.
As per the US Navy’s website, a category 5 hurricane is defined as: “Winds greater than 155 mph. Damage as above plus complete failure of roofs on may residential and industrial buildings. Extensive shattering of window and door glass.”
It goes on: “Many complete building failures and small buildings overturned or blown away. Storm Surge grater than 18′ above normal tidal levels. Low lying escape routes inland cut by rising water 12 to 13 hours before hurricane center arrival. Massive evacuation of residential areas on low grounds within 5 to 10 miles of shore possibly required.”
With the severity of the hurricane in mind, a simulation was created to demonstrate the devastating impact Hurricane Milton may have on people’s homes.
With a category one hurricane, according to the simulation, strong winds can cause tiles from people’s homes to fly off.
As the categories intensify, the impact worsens and by category three, the door of the home in the simulation has is blown into the property and the roof of the house ‘starts to flap up and down in the wind’.
Fast forward to category five and part of the roof has been completely destroyed causing its internal walls to fall down because they’re not attached to anything anymore, and all the trees in the neighborhood will have been uprooted.
The bleak simulation was first posted by The Weather Channel on YouTube 11 years ago, but has been doing the rounds again online ahead of the expected destruction Hurricane Milton’s expected to cause.
With this in mind, people on Twitter are urging Florida residents to evacuate their homes.
“Please, I’m asking my fellow Floridians to evacuate or seek shelter by this evening,” one person who shared the simulation penned yesterday.
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People are being urged to leave their homes to flee the hurricane (Twitter)
“Evacuate Florida. No property or possessions are worth your life,” echoed another.
Elsewhere someone else described category five hurricanes as ‘biblical’.
They wrote: “As a person who’s dealt with hurricanes my whole life a category three & up are very serious. Category 5 is biblical in the damage it may do.
“Imagine a weak tornado but it hitting you for hours straight. Thats a hurricane. Prolonged winds, & rain for hours sometimes days.”
