Millions of Floridians from coast to coast are assessing the overnight destruction left by Hurricane Milton, which made landfall at Siesta Key off Sarasota as a Category 3 storm at around 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, trekked across the state and exited the east coast near Cape Canaveral before dawn Thursday.
At least 3 million homes and businesses were without power, St. Petersburg residents without water, and major damage was done in the Tampa area, where flash flood warnings were still in effect Thursday.
St. Petersburg residents also could no longer get water from their household taps because a water main break led the city to shut down service. St. Petersburg recorded over 16 inches of rain.
Tropicana Field, the home of the Tampa Bay Rays baseball team in St. Petersburg, appeared badly damaged. The fabric that serves as the domed stadium’s roof was ripped to shreds by the fierce winds. It was not immediately clear if there was damage inside. Multiple cranes were also toppled in the storm, the weather service said.
As of 5 a.m. Thursday, Milton was still producing damaging winds and heavy rain in east-central Florida. It was located 15 miles northeast of Cape Canaveral with 85 mph winds and moving northeast at 18 mph.
About 5,500 people live in Siesta Key where Milton made landfall. The popular tourist destination has for years been considered one of the best beaches in the U.S., known for its particularly white sand. An MTV reality show called “Siesta Key” was filmed there.
On its march toward landfall, Hurricane Milton spawned tornado outbreaks across the state. Multiple people were reported dead in a St. Lucie County housing development; St. Lucie County Sheriff Keith Pearson told WPEC-CBS12 that his deputies and state emergency crews will go door-to-door at Spanish Lakes Country Club Village to conduct search-and-rescue operations. In all, more than 100 people are looking for people who may be trapped.
“This is like nothing other we’ve seen,” Pearson said, adding that between six and 12 tornadoes tore through the area within a span of 20 minutes..
Milton’s path zeroed in on the south side of Tampa Bay late Wednesday. A gust of 102 mph was recorded at the Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport by late Wednesday night, a 105-mph gust at Egmont Channel and a 98-mph gust at Middle Tampa Bay, the National Hurricane Center said.
A crane collapsed in downtown St. Petersburg during Hurricane Milton’s furious winds Wednesday night, leaving a gaping hole in an office building that houses several business, including the Tampa Bay Times.
Florida has mobilized helicopters, boats and high-wheeled vehicles to go into the hardest-hit areas, with emergency supplies of water and military rations already distributed to the counties likely to see the worst impacts.
Heavy rain, powerful winds and a series of tornadoes struck Florida from the storm’s leading edge, the National Hurricane Center said Wednesday. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said 19 tornadoes were confirmed across the state and 116 tornado warnings were issued. He did not provide a number but said “numerous counties” reported damage and specifically mentioned damage in Palm Beach County and Port St. Lucie.
“Regardless of the winds from the storm directly, we’ve already seen probably more tornado watches than I’ve ever seen … No one remembers ever seeing this many tornado warnings that have been done,” DeSantis said at a news conference Wednesday. The National Weather Service in Miami issued 55 warnings just in its region.
About 125 homes were destroyed before the hurricane made landfall, many of them mobile homes in communities for senior citizens, said Kevin Guthrie, the director of Florida’s Division of Emergency Management.
The storm grew dramatically in size Wednesday afternoon. Milton’s tropical-force winds extend up to 255 miles from its center as of 11 p.m. Wednesday. Tropical-force winds have speeds of 39-73 mph.
Catastrophic storm surges of between 8 and 13 feet were expected from Anna Maria Island in Manatee County south to Bonita Beach in Lee County. Areas to the north, including Tampa Bay, could see storm surges of 6 to 9 feet.
The Sun Sentinel has made its coverage of Hurricane Milton free to all readers as a public service. Please consider supporting important breaking news such as this by subscribing to SunSentinel.com at a special rate.
DeSantis said at a news conference Wednesday night that Milton’s landfall came before expected, ahead of high tides.
“That’s good for the high tide because the high tide’s not here yet. I think it’ll help with the surge, but it’s going to mean pretty much all the rescues are going to be done in the dark, in the middle of the night,” DeSantis said.
Preparing for what’s certain to be a lengthy, difficult and dangerous aftermath, Florida has assembled about 50,000 electricity repair workers from across the United States and brought in an additional 500 law enforcement officers, DeSantis said.
Search-and-rescue teams are ready to deploy. The state has assembled dozens of aircraft, including helicopters and airplanes, as well as hundreds of high-wheeled vehicles. Emergency food and water kits have been made ready.
Hurricane Milton spawns ‘tornadic supercell’ in South Florida as effects begin rolling into region
Authorities issued mandatory evacuation orders across 11 Florida counties ahead of landfall, with a combined population of about 5.9 million people, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates.
On Monday, Milton had intensified at an astonishing rate with barometric pressure plunging below 900 millibars, making it one of the top five most intense Atlantic hurricanes on record.
A hurricane hunter aircraft reported early Tuesday evening the pressure in the eye of Milton had plunged yet again, indicating another explosive intensification. Colorado State University meteorologist Philip Klotzbach said in a post on X that the only other hurricane on record in the Atlantic with a lower pressure this late in the year was Hurricane Wilma in 2005.
Hurricane Milton: What’s open, closed, canceled and postponed in South Florida | UPDATED
On Anna Marie Island along the southern edge of Tampa Bay, Evan Purcell packed up his father’s ashes and was trying to catch his 9-year-old cat, McKenzie, as he prepared to leave Tuesday. Helene left him with thousands of dollars in damage when his home flooded. He feared Milton might take the rest.
“I’m still in shock over the first one and here comes round two,” Purcell said. “I just have a pit in my stomach about this one.”
Milton presented a worst-case scenario that hurricane experts have worried about for years.
A 2015 report from the Boston-based catastrophe modeling firm Karen Clark and Co. concluded that Tampa Bay is the most vulnerable place in the U.S. to storm surge flooding from a hurricane and stands to sustain $175 billion in damage.
The city is particularly vulnerable because of the Gulf of Mexico’s underwater topography. The Gulf’s gentle slope allows storms to push water long distances and far inland.
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.
