At least four people have died as a result of the impact from Hurricane Milton in Florida between Wednesday night and Thursday morning.
The first fatalities were reported in the St. Lucia County, more specifically in the Spanish Lakes Country Club, and resulted from tornadoes impacting the area. Search and rescue operations are underway to check for more casualties as deputies and firefighters go through rubble.
"Several houses and structures across the county, including the city of Port St. Lucia and non-incorporated areas suffered significant damage," county authorities said. Over 160 tornado warnings were issued for south Florida before Milton made landfall. One twister leveled a large St. Lucie Sheriff's Department facility.
Some three million people are also without power as a result of Milton, with damage reported across the state. The storm tore roofs off buildings, including the one at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, and parts of Sarasota, Fort Myers. Other Gulf Coast areas were submerged by storm surges as high as 10 feet.
Milton made landfall on Siesta Key late Wednesday as Category 3 hurricane with 120 mph winds. It continued to cause widespread damage across Central Florida before moving offshore near Cape Canaveral early Thursday morning. By 5 a.m., local time, it had weakened to a Category 1 hurricane, with winds of 85 mph, but still maintaining its hurricane status. The total damage has not yet been fully assessed, but early estimates suggest the storm could result in billions of dollars in losses.
The full impact of Milton's potentially deadly storm surge won't be known for days, but it seems the worst-case scenario—a two-story-high surge in the densely populated Tampa Bay area—was avoided.
Siesta Key, a barrier island in Sarasota County, bore the brunt of the initial landfall, sparing the heavily populated Tampa Bay area from the worst flooding. However, much of the Gulf Coast experienced sustained winds of 120 mph and stronger gusts throughout the night. Communities to the south, such as Fort Myers Beach and Naples, faced severe storm surges.
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