A FAMILY of seven from South Wales have been left trapped in their holiday home in Florida as a state of tornado watch is announced. 

Renée Short, from Newport, is currently on holiday in Davenport, Florida with her extended family of seven, including her son Cody.

The family have been confined to their holiday home after a visit from the rental company who have advised them on how to stay safe while the country braces itself for Hurricane Milton, with the storm expected to hit Davenport around 8pm on Wednesday evening. 

Ms Short told the Argus that while the situation is "very scary" it is not completely unfamiliar to the family as they were also in the States during Hurricane Helene in late September. 

She explained: "It's been raining very heavily on and off with some very slight winds. Most of the public supermarkets like Walmart are closed, and local diners are closed. 

"It's really only the odd gas station that's open as we are still on tornado watch with the hurricane due to hit us around 8pm our time."

The family have been in the States for a number of weeks as part of a family holiday, with Renée, her son Cody and both parents around during Hurricane Helene, while her daughter Aiva and other son Joseph with his girlfriend have joined them for three weeks. 

Ms Short has had to keep her son Cody, who has Down Syndrome, occupied while the family wait to find out what happens next and if the hurricane will hit. 

Noting that the family might be in a better situation than many, she added: "The rental company have been round to see us and advise us on what we need to do, and we have plenty of supplies and necessities already. 

"We are fortunate that we have multiple televisions in our villa to keep us updated, but we do have the television in the rooms on the kids channel, as Cody can get a bit agitated if we constantly talk about Milton. 

"It's scary, but so far we are all fine and just hope that our power doesn't go down!"

Milton is expected to make landfall on the west coast of Florida late on Wednesday night, with winds of up to 165mph.

A British Airways official statement said: “Safety is always our highest priority and we continue to monitor the situation closely.

“As with other airlines, we are adjusting our flight schedules where airport closures occur and providing any affected customers with alternatives, including flight rebooking options or full refunds.”

Tui said its flying programme will be “extremely disrupted” due to the hurricane.

Virgin Atlantic said it has cancelled a number of flights because of “adverse weather conditions expected to be caused by Hurricane Milton”, with a state of emergency declared in Florida.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said travellers should monitor approaching storms on the US National Hurricane Centre website and follow instructions from local authorities, including evacuation orders.