SARASOTA, Fla. (Diya TV) – Hurricane Milton tore across Florida on Wednesday night, battering the state with powerful winds, heavy rains, and spawning more than 150 tornadoes. The Category 3 storm made landfall in Siesta Key, about 70 miles south of Tampa, bringing devastation in its wake, though the worst-case scenario many feared did not materialize.
As the storm shifted southward, Tampa was spared a direct hit, avoiding the catastrophic storm surge that had been forecasted. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis acknowledged the state had “avoided the worst,” though the storm still caused widespread destruction. Sarasota County saw the worst surge, with water levels reaching 8 to 10 feet, far lower than those seen during Hurricane Helene two weeks earlier.
“We’ve got more to do, but we will absolutely get through this,” DeSantis said Thursday morning as storm-surge warnings persisted for much of the east-central coast of Florida and into Georgia. Florida’s west coast saw up to 18 inches of rainfall in some areas, while widespread flooding affected regions like Plant City, where the city received nearly 14 inches of rain.
Plant City’s City Manager, Bill McDaniel, described the flooding as “absolutely staggering,” with emergency crews rescuing 35 people overnight. Elsewhere, in Matlacha, a small island near Fort Myers, residents were left to clean up homes and businesses damaged by both a tornado and a surge.
The storm, while weaker than initially predicted, claimed at least four lives, all attributed to tornadoes in St. Lucie County on Florida’s east coast. More than 3.4 million homes and businesses were left without power, a situation compounded by the damage left by Hurricane Helene, which hit the region only two weeks ago. This loss of electricity affected major infrastructure, including Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, where the fabric roof of the stadium was torn apart by fierce winds, though no injuries were reported.
Despite missing a direct hit, Tampa faced widespread flooding and damage. Trees were uprooted, streets were littered with debris, and residents reported damage to homes. Emergency crews were out in force, with Tampa police rescuing 15 people from a home that had been crushed by a fallen tree.
As Tampa begins conducting its damage assessments, city officials are urging residents to remain indoors until it is deemed safe to go outside later in the day. “While it may be tempting to assess property damage immediately, safety remains the top priority,” officials advised. Residents are encouraged to wait for official updates before venturing out.
Once conditions are safe, Tampa residents and business owners whose properties sustained non-life-threatening damage are encouraged to visit tampa.gov/SelfReport to complete the Resident Damage Self-Reporting Form. This will assist the city in identifying damage areas more efficiently and aid in reporting to Hillsborough County and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). However, officials emphasized that this form does not replace private property insurance claims.
Tampa police officers are actively patrolling neighborhoods, monitoring damage and localized flooding. Residents can view a map of reported street flooding at tampa.gov/floodmaps or report flooding by calling the Tampa Police non-emergency line at 813-231-6130. Power outages should be reported to TECO by dialing (877) 588-1010.
Fort Myers was among the hardest-hit areas, with reports of homes destroyed and severe flooding. “All this happened in an instant,” resident Connor Ferin said after his house lost its roof to a tornado.
Across the state, evacuation orders were issued to over 7.2 million residents, with about 80,000 people spending the night in shelters. But for many like Jackie Curnick, who was expecting a baby later this month, evacuating wasn’t an option. Faced with the uncertainty of where to stay or how to find fuel, she and her family chose to ride out the storm in their Sarasota home, which was left without power but intact.
