Hillsborough County has redrawn its hurricane evacuation zone maps for 2026, pulling more of Apollo Beach into Zone A and adding inland sections of the community to the county's evacuation zones for the first time.

The changes, based on lessons from the 2024 hurricane season, FOX 13 reported, extend Zone A farther inland along the coastline and the Alafia River. Zone E now covers inland portions of Apollo Beach south of Big Bend Road that were not previously in any evacuation zone.

Riverine Flooding Prompted the Map Changes

"Evacuation zones are very much based on storm surge, but we, of course, saw a lot of inland flooding, that riverine flooding," Katja Miller, operations section chief for the Hillsborough County Office of Emergency Management, said in an April 30 interview with FOX 13. "So, we take a lot of that into account when we're talking about evacuation orders or things of that nature."

Residents can look up their specific zone using the county's Hurricane Evacuation Assessment Tool by searching their address.

NHC Monitors New Atlantic Disturbance

The zone changes carry extra weight as the National Hurricane Center tracks a new area of low pressure in the Atlantic. The NHC gave the disturbance a 30% chance of developing into a tropical system within seven days as of Monday, Sept. 14, up from 20% the day before, according to the Sun Sentinel.

The system poses no threat to Florida.

Located more than 1,000 miles east-southeast of Bermuda, the disturbance is producing disorganized showers and thunderstorms, WFLA reported. Strong upper-level winds are keeping it from organizing, but it could drift into a more favorable environment by midweek, the NHC said.

FOX 35 meteorologist Brooks Garner said there is no immediate threat to Florida from the disturbance. Fox Weather hurricane specialist Bryan Norcross agreed, writing on his Hurricane Intel blog on Sept. 13 that the system is "likely to turn north into the open Atlantic," according to the Sun Sentinel.

Weather patterns along the East Coast are expected to steer any potential tropical system away from the United States, according to Jacksonville Today. If the disturbance does develop, it would most likely affect Bermuda and would become the season's sixth named storm, called Fay.

A Record-Quiet Season at Its Statistical Peak

The 2026 Atlantic hurricane season has yet to produce a single hurricane as of Sept. 14, setting a record for the latest start in the modern satellite era, which began in 1966, according to the Houston Chronicle. An exceptionally strong El Niño and its related wind shear have repeatedly disrupted developing storms. Still, the season's statistical peak fell on Sept. 10, and the most active stretch runs through mid-October.

How to Prepare Now

Hillsborough County has more than 70,000 pre-filled sandbags ready for distribution when a storm threatens, according to a Tuesday, Sept. 8, county press release. Emergency officials recommend keeping at least seven days of supplies on hand, including water, nonperishable food and a battery-powered radio.

Residents can sign up for HCFL Alert, the county's emergency notification system, at hcfl.gov.