Milton leaves millions in the dark | News, Sports, Jobs

Arriving just two weeks after the disasters caused by Hurricane Helene, the system also knocked out power to more than 3 million customers, flooded barrier islands, ripped the roof off a baseball stadium and toppled a crane. construction.

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 a cooler in the Gulf of Mexico after his fishing boat became stranded in rough waters from Hurricane Milton. The agency estimated the man survived winds of 75 to 90 mph (121 to 145 kph) and waves up to 25 feet (7.6 meters) high during his night on the water.

“This man survived a nightmare scenario for even the most experienced sailor,” Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Dana Grady said.

Despite the destruction, many people expressed relief that Milton was no worse off. The hurricane spared Tampa a direct hit, and the deadly storm surge that scientists feared never materialized.

Natasha Ducre examines the kitchen of her devastated home, which lost most of its roof during Hurricane Milton, in Palmetto, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. Ducre, her husband, three children and her two grandchildren, went out following the storm to a government shelter and, upon their return, found their house unlivable and much of their furniture and belongings destroyed by the rainwater. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

The storm headed south over the past few hours and made landfall Wednesday evening as a Category 3 hurricane at Siesta Key, about 70 miles (112 kilometers) south of Tampa. The damage was widespread and water levels could continue to rise for days, but Gov. Ron DeSantis said that was not the case. “worst case scenario”.

“You’re dealing with two hurricanes in a matter of weeks – it’s not easy to get through – but I’ve seen a lot of resilience throughout this state,” the governor said during a briefing in Sarasota. He said he was “very confident that this area will bounce back very, very quickly. »

Five people were killed in tornadoes at Spanish Lakes Country Club near Fort Pierce on Florida’s Atlantic coast, where homes were destroyed, authorities said. Police also found a woman dead under a fallen tree branch in Tampa.

In Volusia County, authorities said two people, a 79-year-old woman in Ormond Beach and a 54-year-old woman in Port Orange, were also killed when trees fell on homes.

Speaking at a White House press briefing, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said tornadoes have caused up to 10 deaths, but he cautioned that figure was preliminary.

At least 340 people and 49 pets have been rescued through ongoing efforts, DeSantis said Thursday afternoon.

South of Tampa, Natasha Shannon and her husband, Terry, felt lucky to be alive after the hurricane tore the tin roof off their cinder block home in Palmetto. They spent the night in a shelter with their three children and two grandchildren after she pushed them to leave.

“I said, ‘Baby, we have to go. Because we’re not going to survive this. » she said.

They returned to find the roof ripped into sheets across the street, shredded insulation hanging from the exposed ceiling beams, and their belongings soaked.

“It’s not much but it was ours” she said. “What little we had is gone.”

The worst storm surge appears to have been in Sarasota County, where it was 8 to 10 feet (2.5 to 3 meters), lower than the worst location during Helene. The storm also dumped up to 18 inches (45 centimeters) of rain in some areas.

Authorities in hard-hit Florida counties of Hillsborough, Pinellas, Sarasota and Lee urged people to stay home, warning of downed power lines, trees on roads, blocked bridges and flooding.

Among the dozens of tornadoes, one struck the small barrier island of Matlacha, just off the coast of Fort Myers. The fishing and tourism village also saw a surge, with many colorful buildings suffering serious damage. Tom Reynolds, 90, spent the morning sweeping up 4 feet of mud and water and picking up pieces of aluminum siding torn off by a tornado that also picked up a car and threw it onto the road.

Elsewhere on the island, a house was thrown onto a street, temporarily blocking it. Some structures caught fire. Reynolds said he plans to repair the house he built three decades ago.

“What else am I going to do?” he said.

By contrast, city workers on Anna Maria Island were glad not to wade through floodwaters as they picked up debris Thursday morning, two weeks after Helene destroyed buildings and blew away piles of sand up to 1.8 m high. Those stakes may have helped protect homes from further damage, said Jeremi Roberts of the state emergency response team.

“I’m shocked it’s not more,” said city worker Kati Sands as she cleared the streets of sidings and broken lights. “We lost so much with Hélène that there wasn’t much left.”

Helene flooded streets and homes in West Florida and killed at least 230 people in the South. In many places along the coast, municipalities scrambled to collect and dispose of debris before Milton’s winds and storm surges could toss it around and worsen the damage.

Power was cut across much of the state. More than 3.4 million homes and businesses were without power, 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 torn to shreds by high winds. Debris littered the ground.

About 80,000 people spent the night in shelters and thousands more fled after authorities issued mandatory evacuation orders in 15 Florida counties, representing a total population of about 7.2 million. residents.

In Punta Gorda, a 10-foot flood from the Peace River swept through the historic district, damaging homes and depositing six boats along a riverside street. This is the third wave to hit the neighborhood in three months.

Josh Baldwin said he would rather scrap his 38-foot (11.6-meter) boat than pay $100,000 to repair it. He was unable to obtain insurance because he was docked in Punta Gorda.

“They don’t like to pay, and this place is always destroyed by hurricanes.” he said.

Half a block away, information technology employees Kent and Cathy Taylor and their son were using an SUV attached to a chain to remove water-logged drywall from the first floor of their three-story house, which they purchased in July. The lower level is gutted, but the upper floors are still structurally sound.

“It will be beautiful again, it’s just a nickname”, » said Cathy Taylor.

By Thursday afternoon, Milton was heading toward the Atlantic Ocean as a post-tropical cyclone with winds of 75 mph (120 km/h), barely hurricane force.

Crossing the bridge connecting the mainland to Anna Maria Island early Thursday, Police Chief John Cosby breathed a sigh of relief. Almost all residents were evacuated. There were no injuries or deaths, and the predicted storm surge never occurred. After fears his police department was underwater, it remained high and dry.

“It’s nice to have a place to come back to” he said.

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Payne and Daley reported from Palmetto, Florida. Associated Press journalists Holly Ramer and Kathy McCormack in New Hampshire; Terry Spencer in Matlacha, Florida; Stephany Matat in Fort Pierce, Florida; Freida Frisaro in Fort Lauderdale; Michael Goldberg in Minneapolis; Joshua Boak in Washington; Jeff Martin in Atlanta; and Adam Geller in New York contributed to this report.