Injury
Nineteen tornadoes have formed in the past few hours, Governor DeSantis said. Tornadoes killed several people in Fort Pierce, although it is not yet clear how many. Authorities say search and rescue efforts are underway.
Across the state, about 125 homes, most of them mobile homes, were destroyed before Milton made landfall. During the night, the Tampa Bay Rays baseball stadium in St. Petersburg was damaged. The roof of Tropicana Field blew apart. Several construction cranes also collapsed in that city. There are no reports yet of further damage or casualties.
Floods
Milton is expected to pass through the major cities of Tampa and Orlando in the coming hours. Floods are mainly feared as a result of rising water levels. A flood warning has been issued for nearly 2 million people in areas including Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater. Up to 46 centimeters of rain could fall in some places. That is about half of the precipitation in the Netherlands in an entire year.
Heaviest storm of this century?
Milton was a Category 5 hurricane early this week, but had weakened to a Category 3 storm upon landfall. There are still fears that this will cause enormous damage. President Biden said last night that Milton could become the strongest storm of this century.
Although massive and urgent evacuation calls were made early this week, the advice for residents of the state is now mainly to stay where they are. It is too dangerous to seek shelter elsewhere now, according to the emergency services. More than 70,000 people have sought shelter, according to the federal disaster management agency.
Florida and surrounding states are still recovering from Hurricane Helene, which hit the area just two weeks ago. It claimed the lives of at least 230 people.
