Deaths have already been reported, millions left without power and tap water left undrinkable after Hurricane Milton slammed into the Florida coast near Siesta Key, south of Sarasota
Residents in the path of Hurricane Milton have been warned they are on their own, as the severity of the storm prevents emergency services from reaching them.
“None of us want to sit on our thumbs not being able to do what we want to do,” said Nick Pachota, a veteran first responder and mayor of Venice, Florida. “But unfortunately if one of us gets hurt there’s no one to rescue the rescuer.”
He joins other Florida authorities in warning that although people can call 911 for help, they will effectively be on their own until the storm passes.
The National Weather Service says the storm’s maximum sustained wind speed was 90 mph (145 kph) at about 1 am Thursday as it passed east of Lakeland, Florida, on its way across the central peninsula.
A crane came down amid the storm (
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Before Milton even made landfall Wednesday evening on Florida’s Gulf Coast, tornadoes were touching down across the state. The Spanish Lakes Country Club near Fort Pierce, on Florida’s Atlantic Coast, was hit particularly hard, destroying homes and leaving some residents dead.
“We have lost some life,” St. Lucie County Sheriff Keith Pearson told WPBF News. He did not say how many people were killed.
People watch water-flooded streets after Hurricane Milton made landfall in Fort Myers, Florida (
The weather service uses something called the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale to estimate potential property damage caused by a hurricane’s sustained wind speed. A Category 1 hurricane is considered to have very dangerous winds that topple shallow-rooted trees, snap tree limbs and damage the exterior of well-constructed frame homes. They can also cause extensive damage to power lines.
Hurricane Milton was a Category 3 storm when it made landfall Wednesday evening. That rating means devastating damage is expected to occur, including roofs torn from well-constructed homes, trees uprooted, and electricity and water systems unavailable for days to weeks.
People look out at surge waters flooding the street from their building in Fort Myers (
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High wind speeds are not the only dangers caused by hurricanes. Hurricane Milton spawned several devastating tornadoes that wreaked havoc on Florida communities Wednesday afternoon. Heavy rainfall and storm surges also caused dangerous flooding in some coastal areas.
Infrastructure has been battered by the severe weather living millions without power. Over 2 million customers are without power as Hurricane Milton cut a path through central Florida late Wednesday night, according to the website PowerOutages.us.
Satellite images show lightening in the skies above Florida
