How conspiracy theories about Hurricane Milton are swirling in the US
Words by George Hancorn and Aisha Kherallah
Nope, the Democrats are not creating 'man-made' hurricanes in order to harm Donald Trump's election chances come-November.
That's one of the many conspiracy theories that have been circulating in recent days, as Florida braces for Hurricane Milton to hit.
The state is preparing for "life-threatening and catastrophic" flooding, just a week after Helene caused widespread destruction.
Around 5.9 million people in 11 counties have been told to evacuate, with President Joe Biden urging people to leave immediately "as a matter of life and death" - as the Category 5 hurricane prepares to strike.
Hurricanes are formed when a tropical wave of air moves across a warm ocean, creating a low pressure area that causes warm air to rise.
The false claims began when Hurricane Helene hit parts of the US just two weeks ago, bringing dangerous 140mph winds and rain, with the death toll surpassing 230.
Now, as Milton prepares to hit, is the 'fake-news' cutting through?
Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene, who sits in the United States House of Representatives, essentially the upper chamber, has claimed "they can control the weather".
In a post on X, Taylor Greene shared an image, appearing to play into the conspiracy that extreme weather events like this could be made.
It's unclear who "they" are.
While Elon Musk, who owns platform X and is publicly backing Donald Trump for November's election, has also appeared to weigh-in on the huge disinformation campaign being spread.
He claimed that the United States' disaster relief agency, FEMA, was 'actively blocking' aid to people in need - with unfounded claims that money is being spent on solely helping migrants being pushed online instead.
Others have posted videos and reshared clips that falsely claim the hurricane is man-made by the Democrats - so they can swoop in and 'clear up the mess'.
FEMA, the agency in the US that helps deal with disasters and emergencies, has condemned some of this online talk, instead posting guidance how to identity the real information from the fake.
The concern is that all of this noise could be impacting trust in institutions, who are crucially telling people how to keep safe. It could also be hitting the uptake of aid.
Many of the claims we've seen aren't only wrong, they're also potentially dangerous. Hurricane Milton could be the US' most severe for more than 100 years, with people warned that if they don't leave their homes, they could die.
In his address to the nation ahead on Wednesday night, President Biden also called out the misinformation surrounding the hurricane, saying "It's beyond ridiculous. It's gotta stop."
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