Getty Image / Jonathan Bachman
While the worst possible scenario for Tampa residents was probably avoided as Hurricane Milton narrowly missed hitting the city directly, plenty of damage was done, lives were lost, and millions of Floridians had to evacuate. That included the players, coaches, and families of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
While the players took off for New Orleans ahead of Sunday’s game against the Saints with plenty of time to spare, that left families behind. But, Jay Glazer, owner of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, went above and beyond to make sure family members and even pets were safely taken care of.
ESPN ran a great feature on Sunday about the impact of Hurricane Milton on the greater Tampa area and on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
On Tuesday, Bucs ownership chartered three planes for 300 family members and 30 pets to New Orleans. The Glazer family also paid for hotels outside of evacuation zones for families that stayed behind
More from ESPN on a tough time in Tampa Bay — and a team’s attempts to play on. pic.twitter.com/FTehAgmPw8
— Jeff Darlington (@JeffDarlington) October 13, 2024
“On Tuesday, they loaded up three planes with 300 family members, 30 different pets, and they brought them here and acquired hundreds of hotel rooms. I want you to look at some of this footage of the Bucs organization this week in these hotel rooms with their children playing throughout, running throughout these ballrooms,” Jeff Darlington said.
General manager Jason Licht called the process a “traveling Noah’s Ark”, which I feel is a pretty apt description.
Obviously, more important things were happening in Tampa this week. But, hopefully Buccaneers’ win on Sunday over the Saints can provide a bit of happiness to people going through a tough time due to Hurricane Helene a few weeks ago and Hurricane Milton last week.