Hurricane Milton aftermath: Millions without power as deaths, flooding reported

TAMPA, Fla. - Hurricane Milton made landfall along Florida’s Gulf Coast as a Category 3 storm, bringing 120 mph winds, storm surge, and flooding. It weakened as it moved through the state late Wednesday into Thursday, leaving widespread power outages and at least six deaths. 

The storm surge impacted heavily populated areas, including Tampa, St. Petersburg, Sarasota, and Fort Myers.

While it caused a lot of damage and water levels may continue to rise for days, Gov. Ron DeSantis said on Thursday it was not "the worst case scenario."

The storm brought up to 18 inches of rain to some parts of the area, according to the governor.

DeSantis said the worst storm surge appeared to be in Sarasota County, where it was 8 to 10 feet — lower than in the worst place during Helene.

"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."

RELATED: Hurricane Milton photos: The impact on the Tampa Bay Area

President Joe Biden urged everyone impacted by Hurricane Milton "to stay inside and off the roads."

"Downed power lines, debris, and road washouts are creating dangerous conditions," Biden's official presidential Twitter account posted on Thursday. "Help is on the way, but until it arrives, shelter in place until your local officials say it’s safe to go out."

Milton’s intensity made it the fifth-strongest cyclone on record in the Atlantic Basin, only falling short of records held by Wilma (2005), Gilbert (1988) Labor Day (1935) and Rita (2005), according to FOX Weather.

Here's what to know:

Hurricane Milton death toll

The Spanish Lakes Country Club near Fort Pierce, on Florida’s Atlantic Coast, was hit particularly hard by tornadoes, with homes destroyed, and four people killed, according to the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office said.

Before Milton even made landfall on Wednesday evening along Florida's Gulf Coast, tornadoes were touching down across the state.

Search and rescue efforts were underway on Thursday.

"We have lost some life," St. Lucie County Sheriff Keith Pearson told WPBF News early Thursday. 

St. Lucie County Sheriff Keith Pearson posted a video to Facebook showing a 10,000 square-foot iron building that had been twisted into a crumpled heap by a tornado. The structure was where the sheriff’s office kept its patrol cars, but luckily no one was inside when it fell, Pearson said.

A fifth fatality was reported on Thursday in Polk County, between Tampa and Orlando. The Polk County Sheriff's Office confirmed a fifth death to FOX Weather but was unable to provide additional details.

The Associated Press reported a sixth death but details were not immediately available.

Milton: Millions of power outages across Florida

The hurricane knocked out power across a large section of Florida.

More than 3.3 million homes and businesses were without electricity as of 9 a.m. ET, according to poweroutage.us, which tracks utility reports, and that number was unchanged several hours later.

Several Central Florida counties were reporting over 70% of customers without power. Rural Highlands and Hardee counties were over 90% out.

Milton tears open Tropicana Field's roof, cranes collapse

Tropicana Field, the home of the Tampa Bay Rays, appeared to be badly damaged early Thursday. Television images showed that the fabric that serves as the domed building’s roof had been ripped to shreds. It was not immediately clear if there was damage inside the stadium.

The Rays’ stadium was not being used as a shelter, but the Tampa Bay Times reported that it was being used as "a staging site for workers" who were brought to the area to deal with the storm’s aftermath.

The stadium is located in St. Petersburg, about 50 miles south of Siesta Key where the hurricane made landfall. It opened in 1990 and initially cost $138 million. It was due to be replaced in time for the 2028 season with a $1.3 billion ballpark.

Multiple cranes were also toppled in the storm.

St. Petersburg Fire Rescue confirmed one collapse late Wednesday about six blocks from the city's pier. There were no reports of injuries. The crane was at the site of a 515-foot-tall luxury high-rise building under construction that is being billed as one of the tallest buildings on the west coast of Florida. 

It was scheduled to be completed in the summer of 2025.

Biden takes swipe at Trump over ‘misinformation’

President Joe Biden on Thursday said he hasn’t spoken to – and doesn’t plan to speak to – former President Donald Trump to address falsehoods he’s spreading on the campaign trail about federal hurricane relief.

But asked what he would say if he did speak to Trump, Biden did not mince words: "Mr. former President Trump, get a life, man. Help these people," Biden said while giving reporters an update on Hurricane Milton.

The White House, and Biden personally, have spent days decrying Trump for making false claims about disaster response, including that federal funding is being diverted for use on people in the country illegally and that such assistance is capped at $750. 

FULL STORY: Biden to Trump: 'Get a life, man,' and stop spreading hurricane misinformation

Milton's rain, wind lingers Thursday

As dawn broke Thursday, officials repeated that the danger had not passed.

Storm surge warnings were issued for much of the east-central coast of Florida and northward into Georgia, and tropical storm warnings were in place along the coast into South Carolina. 

Officials in the hard-hit Florida counties of Hillsborough, Pinellas, Sarasota and Lee urged people to stay home, warning of downed power lines, trees in roads, blocked bridges and flooding.

Wind and rain continued to lash the state's east coast as the hurricane pushed out to the Atlantic.