Tony Paladino has been glued to FOX Weather since Hurricane Milton set its sights on Florida.
His daughter, Isabella, is a University of Central Florida sophomore living at Knights Circle, an apartment complex affiliated with the university.
The family lives in Wisconsin, so Paladino has never dealt with the stress of a hurricane — let alone from almost 1,300 miles away. He wanted to fly Isabella home, but it proved hard given how quickly the storm moved and when UCF announced it was closing.
So she’s riding out the storm at her apartment. She’s told her family she’ll be fine, but her father still worries.
“It makes for some sleepless nights these last couple nights,” Paladino said. “Tonight, I guarantee you, neither of us will get any sleep”
Across UCF’s campus from Knights Circle, Jared Weiss chose to ride out the storm in his on-campus NorthView apartment. His building is largely empty, as many residents elected to evacuate, though some friends are staying, too.
“It does feel a bit like a ghost town,” he said.
Weiss, a freshman, and his friends will hunker down to watch movies, if the power stays on, and play board games during the storm. They’ve stocked up on non-perishable food and battery-powered lanterns to fuel their activities even if there’s no power. The group also plans to host a Thursday Night Football watch party, if the power is on.
An Orlando native, Weiss said Wednesday he feels anxious ahead of Milton’s arrival but also safe in a concrete building with a backup generator.
It’s unclear how many UCF students are staying on campus despite its closure through Friday. A university spokesperson did not have an estimate as of 3 p.m. Wednesday.
In UCF’s hurricane guidance, it directed students not to exit their buildings during the storm and emphasized that students would be responsible for their own safety and comfort. The campus’ emergency services, medical services, electricity, Wi-Fi and water may also not be available, the university said.
Elliott Green, a UCF sophomore, also lives at NorthView and is hanging out with Weiss. His room is on the fifth floor, which houses about 100 people, he said. As of Wednesday afternoon, only about 18 people remained.
His family lives in Ft. Lauderdale, but he chose not to evacuate south because they were away on vacation. Instead, he’s staying at UCF to be around others, especially in case of an emergency.
Either way, Green feels confident he’ll weather the storm.
“I’ve been through this before, living in Florida almost my whole life,” Green said. “I’m not too worried.”
Paladino said he’s been messaging his daughter for days to stock up on food, water and cash. He and other worried parents have also been on a UCF parents page on Facebook, asking questions of those who’ve dealt with hurricanes.
Local parents reassured out-of-state parents that their students would be safe sheltering on campus.
Paladino said his daughter also feels confident she’ll weather the storm just fine, jokingly telling her family that they, not the storm, were making her anxious.
“She’s tough, let’s put it that way,” he said.