Hurricane Milton live updates: Florida surveys ‘tragic’ damage in wake of monster storm, dozens of tornadoes
Multiple fatalities have already been reported as Hurricane Milton continues to wreak havoc as it moves off Florida’s east coast
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At least 12 people have died after Hurricane Milton devastated portions of Florida, leaving residents waking up to survey the damage.
Milton made landfall as a Category 3 hurricane on Wednesday night near Sarasota County’s Siesta Key, bringing multiple tornadoes, 28ft waves, strong winds, heavy rainfall, and devastating storm surge.
Four people in St Lucie County retirement village have been killed by tornadoes brought on by the hurricane after a dozen twisters spawned in the region within 20 minutes.
Ferocious winds caused a crane to collapse into the The Tampa Bay Times in St Petersburg, while the roof of Tropicana Field baseball stadium has been left in disrepair.
More than 3.3m homes and businesses in Florida have been left powerless, with those in the west-central region the worst impacted.
Evacuation alerts were blasted out to millions, with Bradenton Police Chief Melanie issuing a bleak prognosis for those who neglected advice. “What we’ll probably be finding in the morning are bodies,” she told BBC Radio 4’s Today program on Thursday morning.
After landfall, Milton has weakened to a Category 1 hurricane and is moving off Florida’s east coast – with residents still battling against brutal winds and storm surge.
St. Petersburg Mayor says Milton brought about 18 inches of rain, damage to the city’s drinking water systems
“We’re actively working to restore those services to residents as quickly as we can,” Mayor Ken Welch said Thursday.
Customers without power fall late Thursday morning
The number of customers without power on Thursday morning fell slightly from 3.4 million to 3.3 million in just a matter of minutes, according to tracker PowerOutage.US.
Duke Energy reports 850K power outages from Milton
“Hurricane #Milton barreled through our state with a devastating intensity, leaving behind a trail of destruction that we, and many Floridians, can’t yet fully comprehend,” Todd Fountain, Duke Energy Florida storm director, said in a statement.
Stephen King slams ‘sulky teenager’ DeSantis for his response to Hurricane Milton
Author Stephen King has laid into Florida governor Ron DeSantis for his response to Hurricane Milton, as the huge storm batters the US state, already causing “multiple deaths”.
Milton made landfall as a Category 3 hurricane on Wednesday night near Sarasota County’s Siesta Key, bringing multiple tornadoes, 28ft waves, strong winds, heavy rainfall, and devastating storm surge.
Evacuation alerts were blasted out to millions, with Bradenton Police Chief Melanie issuing a bleak prognosis for those who neglected advice.
Greg Evans has the full story.
Stephen King slams ‘sulky teenager’ DeSantis for his response to Hurricane Milton
The Florida governor refused to take a phone call from Kamala Harris about the storm that ‘seemed political’
Volusia County sees three deaths, bringing toll up to nine
Volusia County Sheriff Michael J. Chitwood confirmed to NBC News Thursday morning that three people had died there.
“One person died after a tree fell, he didn’t know at this point how the other two died,” he said.
USF tells students not to come back to campus until it is safe
“Teams from USF are beginning an assessment of all campuses this morning. The safety of our students, faculty and staff is our highest priority,” the University of South Florida said. “The university will provide an update later today. Please do not come back to campus until notified that it is safe to return.”
Boats deployed in morning rescue operations as towns and cities plunged underwater
Flooding fills roads of Hillsborough County, sinkholes open
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