Inmates help Florida residents fill sandbags ahead of Hurricane Milton

LAKE COUNTY, Fla. (Gray News) – Inmates are helping prepare sandbags in parts of Florida ahead of Hurricane Milton.

In a Facebook post, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office said inmates are “assisting residents that are not capable of filling their own sandbags.”

The inmates helped fill sandbags at three locations Tuesday, including PEAR Park, Minneola Athletic Complex, and North Lake Regional Park.

The county sandbag sites are open daily from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. “or until weather conditions become unsafe,” the sheriff’s office said.

Sand and bags are provided, but residents are asked to bring their own shovels to fill the bags.

Lake County is in central Florida and borders the northern and western parts of Orlando.

According to CNN, Hurricane Milton restrengthened to a Category 5 hurricane as of late Tuesday afternoon.

The storm is expected to weaken to a Category 3 hurricane by the time it makes landfall in Florida’s central gulf coast on Wednesday night. However, the storm is expected to double in size, meaning its disastrous impacts will be felt over a large area.

Florida officials are pleading with residents to evacuate and warning that lives are at stake.

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