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More Than 3M Without Power After Milton10/10 06:07
Hurricane Milton barreled into the Atlantic Ocean on Thursday after plowing
across Florida as a Category 3 storm, pounding cities with ferocious winds and
rain, whipping up a barrage of tornadoes and causing an unknown numbers of
deaths. It compounded the misery wrought by Helene while sparing Tampa a direct
hit.
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -- Hurricane Milton barreled into the Atlantic Ocean on
Thursday after plowing across Florida as a Category 3 storm, pounding cities
with ferocious winds and rain, whipping up a barrage of tornadoes and causing
an unknown numbers of deaths. It compounded the misery wrought by Helene while
sparing Tampa a direct hit.
The storm tracked to the south in the final hours and made landfall
Wednesday night in Siesta Key, about 70 miles (112 kilometers) south of Tampa.
The situation in the Tampa area was still a major emergency as St. Petersburg
recorded over 16 inches (41 centimeters) of rain, prompting the National
Weather Service to warn of flash flooding there as well as other parts of
western and central Florida.
As dawn broke Thursday, officials repeated that the danger had not passed:
Storm surge remained a concern in many parts of Florida and tropical storm
warnings were in place for much of the east-central coast. Officials in the
hard-hit counties of Hillsborough, Pinellas, Sarasota and Lee urged people to
stay home, warning of downed power lines, trees in roads, blocked bridges and
flooding.
"We'll let you know when it's safe to come out," Sheriff Chad Chronister of
Hillsborough County, home to Tampa, said on Facebook.
The storm knocked out power across a large section of Florida, with more
than 3.2 million homes and businesses without electricity, according to
poweroutage.us, which tracks utility reports.
The fabric that serves as the roof of Tropicana Field, home of the Tampa Bay
Rays baseball team in St. Petersburg, 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.
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. Mayor Ken
Welch had told residents to expect long power outages and the possible shutdown
of the sewer system.
Just inland from Tampa, the flooding in Plant City was "absolutely
staggering," according City Manager Bill McDaniel. Emergency crews rescued 35
people overnight, said McDaniel, who estimated the city had received 13.5
inches (34 cm) of rain.
"We have flooding in places and to levels that I've never seen, and I've
lived in this community for my entire life," he said in a video posted online
Thursday morning.
Before Milton even made landfall, heavy rain and tornadoes lashed parts of
southern Florida Wednesday morning, with conditions deteriorating throughout
the day. One twister touched down in the lightly populated Everglades and
crossed Interstate 75. Another apparent tornado hit in Fort Myers, snapping
tree limbs and tearing a gas station's canopy to shreds.
The Spanish Lakes Country Club near Fort Pierce, on Florida's Atlantic
Coast, was hit particularly hard, with homes destroyed and some residents
killed.
"We have lost some life," St. Lucie County Sheriff Keith Pearson told WPBF
News, though he wouldn't say how many people were killed.
About 125 homes were destroyed before the hurricane came ashore, many of
them mobile homes in communities for senior citizens, said Kevin Guthrie, the
director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management.
About 90 minutes after making landfall, Milton was downgraded to a Category
2 storm. By early Thursday, the hurricane was a Category 1 storm with maximum
sustained winds of about 85 mph (135 kph) and leaving the state near Cape
Canaveral.
The storm slammed into a region still reeling two weeks after Hurricane
Helene flooded streets and homes in western Florida and left at least 230
people dead across the South. In many places along the coast, municipalities
raced to collect and dispose of debris before Milton's winds and storm surge
could toss it around and compound any damage.
Officials had issued dire warnings to flee or face grim odds of survival. By
late afternoon, some officials said the time had passed for such efforts,
suggesting that people who stayed behind hunker down instead.
Jackie Curnick said she wrestled with her decision to stay at home in
Sarasota, just north of where the storm made landfall. She and her husband
started packing Monday to evacuate, but they struggled to find available hotel
rooms, and the few they came by were too expensive.
With a 2-year-old son and a baby girl due Oct. 29, Curnick said there were
too many unanswered questions if they got in the car and left: where to sleep,
if they'd be able to fill up their gas tank, and if they could even find a safe
route out of the state.
Video taken during the storm showed howling winds and sheets of rain lashing
their glass-enclosed swimming pool as their son and dog watched. Trees shook
violently.
"The thing is it's so difficult to evacuate in a peninsula," she said ahead
of the storm. "In most other states, you can go in any direction to get out. In
Florida, there are only so many roads that take you north or south."
At a news conference in Tallahassee, Gov. Ron DeSantis described deployment
of a wide range of resources, including 9,000 National Guard members from
Florida and other states; over 50,000 utility workers from as far as
California; and highway patrol cars with sirens to escort gasoline tankers to
replenish supplies so people could fill up their tanks before evacuating.
"Unfortunately, there will be fatalities. I don't think there's any way
around that," DeSantis said.
Authorities issued mandatory evacuation orders across 15 Florida counties
with a total population of about 7.2 million people. In Orlando, Walt Disney
World, Universal Orlando and Sea World remained closed Thursday.
More than 60% of gas stations in Tampa and St. Petersburg were out of gas
Wednesday night, according to GasBuddy, though DeSantis said the state's
overall supply was fine.
Officials warned that anyone staying behind must fend for themselves,
because first responders were not expected to risk their lives attempting
rescues at the height of the storm.
In Charlotte Harbor, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) south of Tampa, clouds
swirled and winds gusted as Josh Parks packed his Kia sedan with clothes and
other belongings Wednesday. Two weeks ago, Helene's surge brought about 5 feet
(1.5 meters) of water to the neighborhood, and its streets remain filled with
waterlogged furniture, torn-out drywall and other debris.
Parks, an auto technician, planned to flee to his daughter's home inland and
said his roommate already left.
"I told her to pack like you aren't coming back," he said.
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