What to know about Hurricane Milton after it slammed Florida's Gulf Coast
Florida residents and officials were assessing the damage after powerful Hurricane Milton brought strong winds, heavy rains and tornadoes as it moved toward the Gulf Coast and then barreled across the state
Florida residents and officials began assessing widespread damage Thursday after powerful brought strong winds, heavy rains and as it moved toward the Gulf Coast and then
The U.S. National Hurricane Center discontinued all storm surge and tropical storm warnings related to Milton, now a post-tropical cyclone, as of their latest and final advisory Thursday night.
鈥淭he storm was significant but thankfully, this was not the worst-case scenario,鈥 Gov. Ron DeSantis told reporters.
The storm caused at least eight deaths in a state where with the damage from deadly two weeks ago.
Speaking at a White House briefing, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said there were reports of as many as 10 fatalities from tornadoes, but he cautioned that the number was tentative.
The governor said the storm dumped up to 18 inches of rain in some areas, and officials reported completing dozens of high-water rescues.
Vice President Kamala Harris pledged that 鈥渨e will be with you every step of the way as you recover and rebuild" to those affected by Hurricane Milton.
She spoke at a rally in Chandler, Arizona, on Thursday night, saying the hurricane 鈥渉as cut a path of devastation across Florida鈥 right on the heels of Hurricane Helene.
Harris said that she spoke with Republican and Democratic local officials to pledge ongoing federal help, adding, 鈥淭hat is who we are.鈥
Where did Milton make landfall and where did it go next?
Milton made landfall Wednesday evening as a near Siesta Key, a barrier island of white sand beaches about 70 miles south of the .
While the Tampa Bay area, home to over 3.3 million people, was there was still flooding and damage there.
DeSantis said that Sarasota County, where Siesta Key is located, appears to have gotten the worst storm surge at 8 to 10 feet. That is lower than the worst place during Helene though.
By Thursday afternoon, Milton headed into the Atlantic Ocean as a post-tropical cyclone with winds of 75 mph 鈥 just barely hurricane force.
How bad is the damage?
Officials in hard-hit Florida counties urged people to stay home, warning of downed power lines, trees in roads, blocked bridges and flooding.
Before Milton even made landfall, heavy rain and tornadoes lashed parts of southern Florida, and more than 100 homes were destroyed.
The Spanish Lakes Country Club near Fort Pierce, on Florida鈥檚 Atlantic Coast, was hit particularly hard, with homes destroyed and at least five people killed in tornadoes, the St. Lucie County Sheriff鈥檚 Office said.聽
Police also found a woman dead under a fallen tree branch.
FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell said Thursday that Milton's impact was not as destructive as feared, but she will head out Friday to see damage from some of the tornadoes that touched down in the Florida.
鈥淲e did not have the extreme impacts of the worst case scenario that we prepared for, but there鈥檚 still so many people that have been impacted by this,鈥 she said at a news briefing in Sarasota.
She said the 38 twisters that touched down in the state cause "significant damage to a level that Floridians have not seen from tornadoes,鈥 she said.
Much of the debris and flooded roads she toured Thursday were left from Hurricane Helene, she said.
The storm knocked out power across a large section of Florida, leaving more than 3 million homes and businesses without electricity, according to , which tracks utility reports.
In St. Petersburg, and a water main break led the city to shut down service. Also, the roof of the city's Tropicana Field, home to the Tampa Bay Rays baseball team, . Just inland from Tampa, the flooding in Plant City was 鈥渁bsolutely staggering,鈥 according to City Manager Bill McDaniel.
Meanwhile, a manufacturer of IV fluids said its Daytona Beach factory and distribution center were left intact after Milton.
Mayorkas calls for more FEMA funding, denounces false information spreading online
Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas said the government has 鈥渢he capability and the capacity to respond to and recover from multiple simultaneous disasters鈥 in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton.
Still, he cautioned that Congress needs to allocate more funding for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, saying 鈥渨e will need additional funds.鈥
Additionally, Mayorkas condemned hate speech and false information spread online following the hurricanes' landfall. He said falsehoods are having a negative impact on survivors and hurting the morale of rescue workers.
Mayorkas said the government is "seeing horrific, hate speech of all types, propagated on online platforms,鈥 pertaining to people trying to help address damage from the storm.
Authorities make dramatic rescues
At least 340 individuals and 49 pets were rescued in ongoing efforts, DeSantis said Thursday afternoon.
Among the most dramatic rescues, Hillsborough County officers found a 14-year-old boy floating on a piece of fence and pulled him onto a boat.
A Coast Guard helicopter crew rescued a man who was left clinging to an ice chest in the Gulf of Mexico after his fishing boat was stranded in waters roiled by the hurricane. The agency estimated the man survived winds of 75 to 90 mph and waves up to 25 feet high during his night on the water. "This man survived in a nightmare scenario for even the most experienced mariner," Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Dana Grady said.
More than 100 residents were rescued from an assisted living facility in Tampa, according to a social media post Thursday morning from Hillsborough County Sheriff鈥檚 Office.
The sheriff鈥檚 office and Hillsborough County Fire Rescue were out with amphibious equipment and the marine unit rescuing residents, Sheriff Chad Chronister said in the video.
It shows deputies in nearly waist-deep water outside the facility and residents with walkers being carried away on boats. The video shows flooded streets and parking lots and rescue workers with a boat floating next to a partially submerged flight of stairs helping an apartment building resident in a life jacket wrap up her cat.
Chronister can be seen offering to take a person in a home surrounded by flood waters to dry ground.
鈥淭his is extraordinary to see this type of flooding, especially in this type of area. The University of South Florida area is normally a dry area,鈥 Chronister said in the video. 鈥淭o see this unprecedented flooding, I can only imagine how scary it was.鈥
Tiny barrier island off Fort Myers gets hit by tornado and the effects of hurricane
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The tiny barrier island of Matlacha just off Fort Myers got hit by both a tornado and surge from Hurricane Milton, with many of the turquoise, salmon and lavender buildings sustaining serious damage.
Several collapsed or are knocked off their pilings. Utility poles are snapped and there was no power Thursday morning. The fishing and tourism village also got severely hit by Hurricane Helene two weeks ago and Ian two years ago.
Ninety-year-old Tom Reynolds spent Thursday morning sweeping out the four feet of mud and water the surge deposited in his two-story home and collecting the large chunks of his home鈥檚 aluminum siding that had been ripped off by the tornado. Fortunately for Reynolds and others working outside Thursday, the temperatures were in the low 80s (mid-20s Celsius) and Milton had sucked away all the humidity.
The tornado, he said, had 鈥減icked up a car and thrown it across the road.鈥 A house had been blown into another street, temporarily blocking it. Some structures caught fire.
Reynolds, who founded the glass and mirror company his son now runs, said he lost many of his power tools 鈥 he had stored them high in his shed, but the surge knocked it over.
He said plans to clean up his house, which he built three decade ago, get it fixed and stay.
鈥淲hat else am I going to do?鈥 Reynolds said.
Residents call on Altamonte Springs to do something to stop repeated flooding
In the Spring Oaks neighborhood of Altamonte Springs north of Orlando, an impromptu lake formed from floodwaters on a residential street near Rupert and Ernine Gonzales鈥 split-level home.
They have lived in their house for 22 years, but never saw flooding until two years ago with Hurricane Ian.
Now, it鈥檚 becoming more regular. 鈥淭he city must do something about this flooding, 100%,鈥 Rupert Gonzales said.
鈥淧eople here have gotten flooded, relocated, come back and gotten flooded again. It鈥檚 a way of life, it seems.鈥 Soon or later, people won鈥檛 want to buy homes in his neighborhood, Gonzales said. 鈥淚鈥檓 very concerned because I have to live here and I have to see this flooding every time.鈥
Bradenton Beach chief relieved to see his town for the first time after Milton
It was a 鈥渟igh of relief鈥 when Police Chief John Cosby came across the bridge from the mainland to Anna Maria Island at 4:30 a.m. Thursday and didn鈥檛 see his community underwater.
鈥淰ery close to 100%鈥 of residents evacuated this town ahead of Hurricane Milton, he said, after Hurricane Helene battered this barrier island community just two weeks ago, covering the streets with piles of sand like snowbanks from a blizzard.
鈥淪o far, knock on wood, we鈥檝e had no injuries and no deaths in our community,鈥 from Hurricane Milton, he said.
While wind from Milton battered already damaged homes and knocked at least one multi-story home off its pilings, the projected storm surge didn鈥檛 hit here, he said.
Piles of debris from Hurricane Helene still line the streets here. Mattresses, refrigerators, stacks of plates 鈥 some scattered but others sitting in their heaps 鈥 created a mess, but not the barrage of hurricane-driven missiles so many residents had feared.
Rays say it may take 'weeks' to fully assess damage at Tropicana Field
The Tampa Bay Rays say it may take weeks to fully assess how much damage was done to Tropicana Field, which saw its roof ripped to shreds by the force of Hurricane Milton as the deadly storm barreled across much of Florida.
The team said no one was injured when the St. Petersburg ballpark was struck by the storm on Wednesday night.
A handful of 鈥渆ssential personnel鈥 were inside Tropicana Field as the roof panels were blown apart, much of the debris falling on the field and seats below.
Magic return delayed
The Orlando Magic were planning to spend Thursday in San Antonio and return home on Friday, a day behind their original schedule for the week.
The Magic played a preseason game in San Antonio on Wednesday night. They intended to fly home Thursday, arriving in Orlando in the early afternoon 鈥 those plans being scrapped because of Milton.
Instead, the Magic scheduled a practice in San Antonio on Thursday and have tentative plans to fly back to Orlando on Friday. A preseason game that was to be played Friday in Orlando between the Magic and the New Orleans Pelicans was canceled and will not be rescheduled.
Entertainment elite donate toward hurricane relief efforts
Hollywood power couple聽听补苍诲听聽have given $1 million in relief efforts for Hurricanes Milton and Helene.
Feeding America CEO Claire Babineaux-Fontenot announced the donation from the 鈥淕ossip Girl鈥 star and her 鈥淒eadpool鈥 husband in an聽听罢丑耻谤蝉诲补测.
They鈥檙e the latest celebrities to make a seven-figure donation after megastar singer聽聽gave $5 million earlier.
What if I have plans to vacation in Florida?
Three major theme parks in the Orlando area 鈥 Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando and SeaWorld 鈥斅犅燽ut planned to reopen on Friday.
Orlando's airport 鈥 the nation鈥檚 seventh busiest and Florida鈥檚 most trafficked 鈥斅犅燼s Milton threatened, as did Tampa International and nearby St. Pete-Clearwater International.
DeSantis said Thursday that the Tampa airport was repairing 鈥渕inimal damage鈥 and should reopen no later than Friday.
Why are scientists saying this is an odd storm season?
storm season they have ever seen.
Beryl in July became the to reach status. Still, there was record quiet from Aug. 20 鈥 the traditional start of peak hurricane season 鈥 to Sept. 23, according to Colorado State University hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach.
Then five hurricanes popped up between Sept. 26 and Oct. 6, more than double the old record of two. On Sunday and Monday, there were three hurricanes at the same time, which had never happened before, Klotzback said.
In just 46 1/2 hours, Milton went from forming as a tropical storm with 40 mph winds to a top-of-the-charts .
Some might wonder if it is events. But scientists say are too powerful for that, and is providing more fuel than ever for storms like Helene and Milton.
What made Milton so unusual?
Warm water fueled rapid intensification that took Milton from a in less than 10 hours.
Milton also grew so potent because it avoided high-level cross winds that often decapitate storms, especially in autumn. As Milton neared Florida, it hit those winds and dropped in strength.
In the hours before Milton hit, forecasters worried it could send as much as 15 feet of water rushing onto the heavily populated shores of Florida鈥檚 Tampa Bay.
Instead, several feet of water temporarily drained away.
Why? 鈥淩everse storm surge鈥 is a familiar, if sometimes unremarked-upon, function of how hurricane winds move seawater as the storms hit land 鈥 in fact, it has happened in Tampa Bay before.
Read more about how .
Photos: Hurricane Milton moves through Gulf of Mexico
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