More than 1,000 animals live at the 65-acre zoo, including elephants, giraffes, primates, flamingos, alligators, extinct-in-the-wild Panamanian golden frogs and rare red wolves. For now, ZooTampa is well within Milton’s projected path. It lies less than 10 miles from Tampa’s waterfront, where storm surge could reach up to 13 feet.

Floridians are racing to safety ahead of Hurricane Milton, including many animals at the Tampa Zoo. A dozen employees are volunteering to stay with the animals through the massive storm. Senior Director of Animal Programs at ZooTampa Tiffany Burns joins Ana Cabrera to share more.

By Rich McKay (Reuters) -After millions of people were ordered to flee along Florida's Gulf Coast, the African elephants, Caribbean flamingos, pygmy hippos and about 1,000 other animals were riding out the monstrous Hurricane Milton at Tampa's zoo.

Before Hurricane Milton made landfall, Florida residents had been preparing for days. Some were required to evacuate their homes, others did what they could to minimize potential damage and keep themselves and their loved ones safe and a handful chose to ride it out despite the potential risks.