Hurricane Milton made landfall in Florida as a Category 3 storm, bringing dire conditions to coasts still hard hit by Helen, and spawning a barrage of tornadoes, followed by winds of more than 100 miles per hour (160 kilometers per hour). hit the city, but was spared a direct hit on Tampa.
The storm moved south in the final hours and made landfall on Siesta Key near Sarasota, about 70 miles (112 kilometers) south of Tampa, on Wednesday night. More than 16 inches (41 centimeters) of rain was recorded in St. Petersburg, and the situation in the Tampa area remains a critical emergency, with the National Weather Service warning the region and other parts of west and central Florida. Warned about flash floods.
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Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, home of the Tampa Bay Rays baseball team, appeared to have suffered severe damage. The fabric on the roof of the dome stadium was torn to shreds by the fierce winds. It was not immediately clear whether there was any internal damage. The weather bureau said the storm also knocked down several cranes.
Residents of St. Petersburg were also unable to get water from their household taps after the city cut off service due to a water main break.
The storm caused power outages across large swathes of Florida, leaving more than 3 million homes and businesses without power as of early Thursday, according to poweroutage.us, which tracks utility reports.
Before Milton made landfall, tornadoes had touched down across the state. Spanish Lakes Country Club near Fort Pierce on Florida’s Atlantic coast was particularly hard hit, with homes destroyed and some residents killed.
St. Lucie County Sheriff Keith Pearson told WPBF News that several lives were lost, although he would not say how many people died.
About 125 homes were destroyed before the hurricane made landfall, many of them mobile homes in senior living communities, said Kevin Guthrie, director of the Florida Department of Emergency Management.
Approximately 90 minutes after landfall, Milton was downgraded to a Category 2 storm. By early Thursday morning, the hurricane had become a Category 1 storm with maximum sustained winds of about 85 mph (135 kph), circling about 35 miles (55 km) south of Orlando.
Heavy rains could also cause inland flooding along rivers and lakes as Milton moves across the Florida peninsula as a hurricane and eventually emerges in the Atlantic Ocean Thursday. The impact is expected to be felt in the densely populated Orlando area.
The storm struck the region still reeling two weeks after Hurricane Helen flooded roads and homes in western Florida and killed at least 230 people across the South. In many places along the coast, municipalities are scrambling to collect and dispose of debris before the Milton River’s winds and storm surge cause more damage.
Authorities had issued a stern warning that if he did not flee, his chances of survival were slim.
That’s all, said Kathy Perkins, emergency management director for Pinellas County, which is located on a peninsula that forms Tampa Bay. To those who got punched in Hurricane Helen, this is going to be a knockout. You have to get out of there, and you need to get out now.
By late afternoon, some officials said the time for such efforts had passed and suggested those who remained might hunker down instead. By evening, some counties announced they had suspended emergency services.
Jackie Karnick said she debated whether to stay in her home in Sarasota, just north of where the storm made landfall. But Karnick and her husband, who have a 2-year-old son and a baby girl due Oct. 29, thought it was best.
Karnick said he started packing to evacuate on Monday, but couldn’t find any available hotel rooms, and the few he did find were too expensive.
She said there are too many unanswered questions if she gets in her car and leaves, including where she’ll sleep, whether she’ll be able to fill up on gas or even find a safe route out of state. .
The problem, she said, is that it’s very difficult to evacuate on the peninsula. In most other states, you can walk out in any direction. Florida has limited roads that go either north or south. ”
At a news conference in Tallahassee, Gov. Ron DeSantis described the deployment of a wide range of resources, including 9,000 National Guard troops from Florida and other states. More than 50,000 utility workers will gather from as far away as California. Highway police cars also appeared, blaring sirens, escorting gas tankers and replenishing them with supplies so they could fill up before people evacuated.
Unfortunately, there will be deaths. I don’t think there’s a way around that, DeSantis said.
Heavy rain and tornadoes battered parts of southern Florida starting Wednesday morning, and conditions worsened throughout the day. Inland areas are expected to receive 6 to 12 inches (15 to 31 centimeters) of rain, with up to 18 inches (46 centimeters) in some places, raising the risk of catastrophic flooding.
A twister touched down in the sparsely populated Everglades and crossed Interstate 75 Wednesday morning. Another suspected tornado touched down in Fort Myers, snapping tree branches and tearing the canopy of a gas station to shreds.
Authorities have issued a mandatory evacuation order for all of Florida’s 15 counties, with a total population of about 7.2 million people. Officials warned that anyone stranded must fend for themselves as first responders are not expected to risk their lives trying to rescue people in the midst of a storm.
St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch told residents to expect extended power outages and the possibility of sewer system outages.
Clouds were swirling and the wind was blowing as Josh Parks packed clothes and other belongings into his Kia sedan in Charlotte Harbor, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) south of Tampa. The area was flooded with about 1.5 meters of water when the Helen River rose two weeks ago, and the streets are still filled with waterlogged furniture, torn drywall and other debris.
Mr. Parks, an auto technician, said he intended to flee inland to his daughter’s house and that his roommate had already left.
I told her to pack and never come back, he said.
Airlines had canceled about 1,900 flights by early afternoon. SeaWorld was closed all day Wednesday, and Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando closed in the afternoon.
More than 60% of gas stations in Tampa and St. Petersburg were out of gas Wednesday afternoon, according to GasBuddy. DeSantis said supplies across the state are good and highway patrol officers are escorting tanker trucks to replenish supplies.
In Gulfport, in the Tampa Bay area, Christian Burke and his mother were holed up in a three-story concrete house overlooking the bay. Mr Burke said his father had designed the house with Category 5 in mind and would now test it.
As passing police cars loudly urged people to evacuate, Burke admitted it wasn’t a good idea to stay behind and said he wasn’t laughing at the storm one bit.
