Viral highway flooding video doesn't show Hurricane Milton in Florida | Fact check
The claim: Video shows traffic, flooding in Florida during Hurricane Milton
An Oct. 9 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) shows heavy traffic on a flooded bridge and motorists driving through water.
“People Are STUCK On Bridges During Hurricane Milton,” text in the video reads. Its caption also includes a reference to Florida.
A version of the claim posted to Facebook was shared more than 500 times in a day before it was deleted. It also received tens of thousands of additional shares on TikTok and thousands of likes on Instagram.
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Our rating: False
The video is miscaptioned. It shows a video that has circulated online for several weeks, well before Milton made landfall.
Video predates Milton's landfall in Florida
After making landfall Oct. 9 near Sarasota, Florida, as a Category 3 storm, Hurricane Milton tore across the Florida Peninsula and left millions without power.
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But the video shared to Facebook does not show Florida and has nothing to do with Milton. It predates the hurricane by weeks and reportedly shows flooding in India.
The clip in the post was previously shared in a Sept. 25 Instagram post with a caption that states it shows Mumbai. The clip in that post also includes on-screen text that indicates it shows the Western Express Highway – a major thoroughfare that connects Mumbai to its northern suburbs. This on-screen text is cropped out of the version shared to Facebook on Oct. 9. USA TODAY found no record of the video being online prior to Sept. 25 but could not independently confirm the origin of the video.
Mumbai flooded Sept. 25 after parts of the city received up to 11 inches of rain, according to Reuters. At least four people were killed, AFP reported. Similar clips showing the September flooding of the Mumbai highway were posted by multiple legitimate media outlets in India
USA TODAY previously debunked false claims that a video montage shows damage from Milton and that the storm reached a strength of “Category 6.”
USA TODAY reached out to several social media users who shared the video but did not immediately receive responses.
AFP also debunked the claim.
Our fact-check sources:
@laljipatel, Sept. 25, Instagram post
Maps of India, accessed Oct. 10, Western Express Highway
Reuters, Sept. 26, Heavy rains snarl traffic, shut schools in Mumbai and nearby regions
AFP (Barron’s), Sept. 26, Storms, Heavy Rains Kill Four In Mumbai Region
Mumbai News, Sept. 25, X post
MBA Media Network, Sept. 25, Instagram post
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Viral highway flooding video doesn't show Milton | Fact check