Florida Issues Evacuation for Tropical Storm Nicole Before Polls Close

Mandatory evacuations were issued for several coastal Florida counties on Election Day as emergency services prepare for Tropical Storm Nicole to hit parts of the state early Wednesday morning.

Nicole, although not anticipated to be as catastrophic as Hurricane Ian in September, is expected to make landfall in the Sunshine State around 1 a.m. Thursday as a Category 1 hurricane, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC). The NHC said in a tweet that early Wednesday, portions of Florida and Georgia will start to see tropical storm conditions, such as strong winds and storm surges.

Parts of Volusia County, which surrounds the greater Daytona Beach area, were the first to receive evacuation orders Tuesday afternoon. The order will take effect at 9 a.m. Wednesday and must be completed by 4 p.m. Wednesday. Residents east of the Intracoastal Waterway or living in low-lying areas are among those ordered to leave.

Some mandatory evacuation zones were also ordered in Flagler County, north of Volusia, reported NBC News affiliate WESH. The Miami Herald also reported evacuation zones along the coast in Palm Beach and Brevard counties.

The orders from emergency officials will take effect less than 24 hours after polling locations closed in Florida at 7 p.m. Tuesday. Election officials had urged voters to cast their ballots before early voting closed on Sunday in order to avoid weather-related disruptions, reported the Associated Press. However, Election Day was conducted statewide without much interruption.

Former President Donald Trump was among Floridians who cast their ballots in person on Tuesday. Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate is not anticipated to be directly in Nicole's path, but AccuWeather previously told Newsweek that the former president's home in Palm Beach should expect some storm-related winds and rain.

Florida's Division of Emergency Management (FDEM) issued a state of emergency in 34 counties on Tuesday, announcing it was "closely monitoring" the storm. The agency added that it was continuing to support Floridians recovering from Hurricane Ian's devastation.

The Florida Power & Light Company (FPL), which covers the eastern coast of the state, also said it is preparing for widespread outages ahead of the tropical storm, according to a statement from the company Tuesday.

"Following Hurricane Ian's widespread destruction just a few weeks ago, Nicole has the potential to topple storm-weakened trees throughout FPL's service area, especially in the western and central part of Florida," the utility said.

Newsweek has reached out to FDEM for comment.