Hurricane Milton carves deadly path through Florida, millions without power

Video shot by a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration drone shows a massive 28-foot wave crashing inside Hurricane Milton before it made landfall in western Florida on Wednesday.

Milton was rated at a category 5 throughout Wednesday before dipping to a category 3 just before it slammed into the Florida coast.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says the storm was "significant," but he added that it was "not the worst-case scenario."

The storm also spawned multiple tornadoes across southern Florida, wreaking even more havoc amid the storm surge.

The state has deployed some 10,000 national guardsman, roughly 3,000 of which have been sent to assist by other states.

First responders began search and rescue missions at first light Thursday morning after conditions dipped below hurricane-force winds.

Social media was aghast at a handful of Floridians who chose to ignore evacuation orders and ride out Hurricane Milton in their homes this week.

One man, who has come to be known as "Lt. Dan," went viral for his plans to ride out the massive storm in his sailboat. Meanwhile, social media influence Caroline Calloway shocked her followers by announcing she would be staying in her waterfront condo in Sarasota, Florida, just south of Tampa.

Joseph "Lt. Dan" Malinowski, who is missing his left leg, had a biblical explanation for his stubbornness.

"I’m not going anywhere because the safest place to be is on a boat in a flood," told TikTok user Tampa Terrence. "We learned that with Noah. Everyone who stayed on land drowned. Noah and the animals lived."

News Nation reporter Brian Entin confirmed that Malinowski was alive and well aboard his sailboat after the storm. He posted a video of him calling out to "Lt. Dan" just before midnight on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Calloway joked on her Instagram story ahead of the storm that the price of her books would go "WAY up" if she died in the storm.

"Order now," she wrote.

Calloway explained her decision to ride out the storm in an interview with Intelligencer on Wednesday. She said she has been partly influenced by past bad experiences when trying to evacuate from hurricanes.

"It is just choosing between so many terrible choices. It’s like, okay, so we get evacuated here, but then we left up all of our neighbors. And also we’ll be stuck in traffic. I can’t drive. Remember, I spent my full last 20s either in England or in the West Village. I never got a license, so I would’ve had to wait until my mom came and got me to evacuate, which really would’ve put us behind on the traffic. So we’d be what in traffic in just a hotel that was also getting tropical. I doubt we could have made it out of the state of Florida in time, assuming that we wouldn’t have been able to leave until Tuesday morning, I think is probably the earliest she could have come and got me. So it’s just like what? We’d be somewhere else in the state in a less sturdy structure with less terrible weather, but without our neighbors, what do you choose? It’s all very difficult, and this is what I chose," she told the outlet.

President Biden praised Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for being "gracious" as he spoke with him about mitigating multiple hurricanes hitting Florida.

There has been an ongoing feud between Vice President Kamala Harris’ team and DeSantis in recent days. NBC News reported Monday that DeSantis has been denying phone calls from Harris' team, but it seems the governor and the president are on far better terms.

During a press briefing at the White House on Wednesday, Real Clear Politics reporter Philip Wegmann asked, "Mr. President, does Governor DeSantis need to take Vice President Harris’s calls?"

"All I can tell you is I’ve talked to Governor DeSantis," Biden answered. "He's been very gracious. He thanked me for all we've done. He knows what we're doing, and I think that's important."

Biden has had multiple phone calls with DeSantis since Hurricane Helene began barreling down on the southeast two weeks ago, followed by Hurricane Milton making landfall late Wednesday, and told both DeSantis and Tampa Mayor Jane Castor to "call him directly" if any further support is needed. 

DeSantis, meanwhile, noted Tuesday morning that all his federal requests for more support have been answered. 

Harris has accused DeSantis of "playing political games" amid the hurricanes.

"People are in desperate need of support right now and playing political games with this moment, in these crisis situations, these are the height of emergency situations, it's just utterly irresponsible, and it is selfish," Harris told reporters Monday. 

Biden, by contrast, had instead referred to the Florida governor as "cooperative."

This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News' Alexander Hall

Florida Lt. Gov. Jeanette Núñez joined "Fox & Friends" on Thursday to discuss the destruction left by Hurricane Milton, which slammed into the Sunshine State as a Category 3 storm late Wednesday.

Núñez said that officials knew ahead of time the storm would be "far-reaching," and so Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an emergency order days in advance that included 51 of the state's 67 counties. 

"So the tornadoes really were something of concern for us yesterday, all throughout yesterday. We were encouraging people to stay safe, to stay indoors. But as you saw, we're waking up this morning to all the devastation and all the damage," she said. 

"Hurricane Milton indeed packs a punch, but Florida is ready under the leadership of Governor DeSantis. And we're going to continue to help people rebuild." 

DeSantis told reporters Thursday that officials are still analyzing damage from the storm. 

“We will better understand the extent of the damage as the day progresses,” he said. “The storm was significant but thankfully, this was not the worst case scenario.”

Hurricane Milton caused significant damage in west-central Florida, including in the community of Plant City, according to a local official. 

"One of the most profound things that I'm seeing out there is the flooding. We have flooding in places and to levels that I've never seen, and I've lived in this community my entire life," Plant City Manager Bill McDaniel said in a video posted on social media. 

"It's absolutely staggering what we're seeing out there." 

McDaniel said police and fire department personnel rescued 35 individuals from flooded structures in the community. Trees and powerlines are down and it is not safe to drive, he warned. 

"I mentioned in the previous broadcast about a vehicle crash that we had heard. That was actually a case of someone driving around out there on our streets and they hit a downed power line at relatively high speed, and it actually sliced into the engine compartment of the vehicle. That's a good indication of why it's very dangerous to get out there and move around right now."  

The Tampa airport is repairing minimal damage and is expected to reopen on Friday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday at a press conference. 

Speaking from the state Emergency Operations Center in Tallahassee, he also indicated that ocean ports will likely be able to resume operations "very quickly." 

Some Florida schools may reopen on Friday as well. 

"We still have a lot of school closures for today. I think Floridians should just keep in contact with their their local officials about what that's going to be," DeSantis said. "I would imagine a lot of the schools, that we're not necessarily in the direct path of the storm will be open tomorrow." 

DeSantis said the state has not officially confirmed any fatalities, but “that does not mean there has not been any,” he said. He said he’s aware of reports of fatalities associated with tornadoes on the eastern side of the state.

The Associated Press contributed to this update.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said rescue operations were underway Thursday morning after Hurricane Milton made landfall as a Category 3 storm in Sarasota County overnight.

"At least 48 individuals have been rescued as of 06:30," the governor reported. "National guard search and rescue teams have worked overnight and successfully executed rescues of families and pets on the west coast and from the destruction of the tornadoes in the central and eastern parts of Florida."

There are 31 operational rescue aircraft and hundreds of rescuers engaged in more than 125 active missions in 26 Florida counties, in addition to over 6,500 soldiers deployed throughout the state, according to DeSantis.

Power has been restored to 635,000 residents since the hurricane made landfall, the governor said, although there are still 3.1 million people without power. Hillsborough, Hardee, Manatee, Pinellas and Sarasota Counties are the areas with the most power outages. 

"There are 50,000 plus linemen that have been pre-staged. A lot of what they'll do this morning is likely assess the damage and then begin restoration operations very quickly," DeSantis said.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis provided an update on Hurricane Milton Thursday morning after the storm made landfall overnight and moved north east through the Sunshine State.

"Around 8:30 p.m. last night, Hurricane Milton made landfall near Siesta Key in Sarasota County. It moved quickly across central Florida overnight, producing significant flooding and damaging winds near its path. The storm did bring much destruction and damage," DeSantis said. 

The governor said tornadoes ravaged the eastern part of the state ahead of Milton's landfall. He reported flooding along the west and east coasts and strong winds in Pinellas, Hillsborough, Manatee and Sarasota Counties. 

"We had over 80,000 people that were into shelters overnight as the storm hit the state. We will better understand the extent of the damage as the day progresses," DeSantis said, adding that first responders have been working through the night to assist people in distress.

"And what we can say is the storm was significant, but thankfully, this was not the worst case scenario. The storm did weaken before landfall and the storm surge, as initially reported, has not been as significant overall as what was observed for Hurricane Helene." 

A Florida small business owner said he is "experiencing the worst" for his store after Hurricane Milton made landfall just weeks following Hurricane Helene.

Cariloha Sarasota store owner Jeff Snell spoke to "Fox & Friends" on Thursday about his experience. Snell's store was flooded two weeks ago and with Milton making landfall in his backyard, the business owner said he was faced with "total destruction." 

"It is our sole source of income. And after Helene, we started looking for another job while we were rebuilding. And hopefully the stores are still standing so we can rebuild them now with some help," he said. 

Snell lives in Venice, just south of Sarasota. He evacuated to Ft. Lauderdale ahead of Milton after seeing the damage that Helene wrought. 

"It's extremely stressful," he said. "We're worried about our parents who live up in the Brandon Valrico area now, and they're in their upper 80s. So I don't know how they're doing. And we'll wake up to see like everybody else how bad our home is flooded."

First responders in Florida are answering emergency calls for rescue from the dangerous flood waters caused by Hurricane Milton.

Volusia County Fire Rescue personnel were pictured saving someone from flooding in a pre-dawn rescue Thursday morning.

The Florida Division of Emergency Management warned of dangerous tropical storm force winds, flooding and storm surge in the East Coast and Central Florida as Hurricane Milton continues to move offshore. 

"Avoid flooded areas at all costs & continue to follow all weather alerts," authorities posted on social media. 

A significant portion of Volusia County, which includes Daytona Beach, is currently without power, FOX Weather reported. Daytona Beach was categorized as a Level 4 risk for both storm surge and freshwater flooding.

FOX Weather Meteorologist Haley Meier was on scene and reported there appeared to be less flooding in Daytona Beach compared to previous hurricanes.

"With (Hurricanes) Ian and with Nicole, we had a dam breach and that led to the significant flooding. In regard to this storm, (city officials) have made the necessary preps. So I'm not seeing that in abundance," she said. 

The St. Lucie County Emergency Operations Center confirmed to FOX Weather that at least four people were killed after several tornadoes spawned by Hurricane Milton touched down on Wednesday.

Sheriff Keith Pearson said search and rescue crews were mobilizing to find victims in Spanish Lakes Country Club in Fort Pierce, where a significant tornado ripped through.

"They didn’t stand a chance," Pearson said. "Everything in (the tornado's) path is just devastated. Our deputies are out there even while the storm Milton is approaching with National Guardsmen, with search and rescue teams going through the rubble."

The sheriff reported that hundreds of homes were either damaged or destroyed in the county. The exact number of people trapped and in need of rescue is unknown.

"We’ve got about 300 members of law enforcement and volunteers out there sifting through these residences on the rescue mission to see if we can get anybody else out of there," Pearson told FOX Weather. 

The sheriff's office was among those buildings that were damaged. A video taken outside the headquarters showed a 10,000 square foot building that was demolished by a tornado. Pearson said no one was inside and no one was injured.  

Residents of Sarasota County, Florida should not travel Thursday morning as the roads are reported to be dangerous after Hurricane Milton passed, according to the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office.

Reports from "first-in" emergency crews indicated downed power lines and trees have blocked roadways, the sheriff's office said in a social media post. Some bridges in the county are not passable.

"We urge residents and business owners to stay off the roads and give our emergency and utility crews time to work. The storm may have passed but it is still dangerous to be traveling this morning," the sheriff's office said.

Hurricane Milton made landfall as a Category 3 storm near Siesta Key in Sarasota County late Wednesday. Wind gusts reached 102 mph in St. Petersburg, Sarasota and Siesta Key, while the strongest gust in the state was 107 mph south of Sarasota around Venice, FOX Weather reported. 

President Biden spoke with Sarasota Mayor Liz Alper on Wednesday and reassured the mayor that the federal government will provide significant resources to aid rescue, recovery and rebuilding operations in impacted communities. 

Powerful winds from Hurricane Milton have forced a construction crane to collapse in downtown St. Petersburg, leaving what is described as a "gaping hole" in an office building. 

The crane tumbled overnight from 400 Central Avenue, according to Fox13 Tampa Bay. The 515-foot-tall luxury condominium high-rise will be "one of the tallest residential buildings on the west coast of Florida" upon its completion in summer 2025, its website says. 

There were no reports of injuries from the collapse, but the Tampa Bay Times says the crane left a "gaping hole" in an office building that houses its headquarters, which had been evacuated in advance of Hurricane Milton’s arrival on Wednesday. 

A video taken at the scene showed one part of the crane resting against the office building while another part blocked off a street. 

Prior to the collapse, St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch expressed concerns about the cranes and how they would fare during Milton, Fox13 Tampa Bay reports. 

Hurricane Milton has been downgraded to a Category 1 storm with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph, according to the National Weather Service.

As of 5 a.m. Thursday, the storm was located about 10 miles northeast of Cape Canaveral, Florida, continuing north and east at a speed of 18 mph.

The weather service uses 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.

In addition to high speed winds, the hurricane has spawned several deadly tornadoes that tore through Florida communities Wednesday afternoon. Heavy rain and storm surges have also caused dangerous flooding in coastal areas.

The Associated Press contributed to this update.

Former President Trump's family is hosting 275 Florida Power and Light linemen at his hotel in Miami due to Hurricane Milton.

"You are amazing and the Trump Family, and entire state of Florida, appreciates you!" the former president's son, Eric Trump, wrote on the social media platform X. "Enjoy the rooms - they are the best in Florida! Be safe!"

The linemen are slated to respond to the aftermath of the hurricane.

The storm knocked out power across a large section of Florida, with more than 3.2 million homes and businesses without electricity, according to poweroutage.us, which tracks utility reports.

At a news conference in Tallahassee, Gov. Ron DeSantis described deployment of a wide range of resources, including 9,000 National Guard members from Florida and other states; over 50,000 utility workers from as far as California; and highway patrol cars with sirens to escort gasoline tankers to replenish supplies so people could fill up their tanks before evacuating.

Fox News Digital's Landon Mion and the Associated Press contributed to this update.

More than 3 million people in Florida are without power Thursday morning after Hurricane Milton made landfall near Siesta Key last night as a Category 3 storm with winds of 120 mph, devastating the state's west coast.

Milton, which is a Category 1 storm at the time of this report, has currently moved off Florida's east coast after bringing damaging winds, flooding rains and a developing storm surge threat to that area.

More than 10 inches of rain has fallen so far in some parts of Florida and an additional 8 to 12 inches of rain is possible in many areas as a result of Hurricane Milton. In St. Petersburg, where the roof was torn off the Tampa Bay Rays' Tropicana Field, 18 inches of rain was recorded over a 24-hour span, according to Fox Weather.

St. Lucie County Sheriff Keith Pearson also confirmed to Fox Weather that there have been 17 tornadoes along with several fatalities in his county, with "a rescue mission ongoing, and hundreds of homes destroyed."

Fox News Digital's Anders Hagstrom, Bradford Betz, Gabriele Regalbuto, Stepheny Price, Landon Mion and Greg Norman contributed to this update.