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Hurricane Milton death toll rises to 17 with 1.8m still without power as flooding threat to last ‘weeks’: Live

Wind and storm surge warnings for Milton have been discontinued but hazards in the hurricane’s aftermath remain

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At least 17 people have died after Hurricane Milton devastated Florida, as forecasters warned that the threat of flooding will remain in place for "days to weeks".

Authorities and residents are assessing the extent of the damage from the storm, with those in the west-central region the worst impacted.

Around 1.8 million homes and businesses in Florida still without power early on Saturday, .

More than 50,000 linemen have been deployed in an effort to restore power, governor Ron DeSantis said.

A phosphate mine operator warned that during the storm its facility dumped thousands of gallons of pollution into Tampa Bay as drains overflowed.

Milton made landfall as a Category 3 hurricane on Wednesday night near Sarasota County’s Siesta Key, spawning dozens of tornadoes, 28ft waves, strong winds, heavy rainfall, and devastating storm surge.

Six people were killed in St Lucie County retirement village after a dozen twisters spawned in the region within 20 minutes.

Ferocious winds caused a crane to collapse into The Tampa Bay Times in St Petersburg, while the Tampa Bay Rays said the roof of their Tropicana Field stadium was badly damaged.

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Flamingos return to Disney habitat after Milton

Julia Musto12 October 2024 11:00

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Florida pig, named Millie, rescued from Hurricane Milton floodwaters

Rescue efforts continue in the state of Florida as fears of Hurricane Milton lingers over residents.

Hundreds of people and dozens of animals have been pulled out of floodwaters including a pig named Millie.

The Independent’s Noopur Jambhekar has more: https://www.independent.co.uk/tv/news/hurricane-milton-florida-pig-rescue-b2628117.html

Julia Musto12 October 2024 10:30

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Tampa family keeps found cat safe after Milton

Julia Musto12 October 2024 10:00

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Hurricane Milton: Watch US Coast Guard rescue man clinging to ice box

Hurricane Milton: Watch US Coast Guard rescue man clinging to ice box

This is the moment a man clinging to an ice box in the Gulf of Mexico during Hurricane Milton is rescued by the US Coast Guard. Rescuers located the man 30 miles off Longboat Key in Florida, after he became stranded. The man, whose identity has not been disclosed, had been aboard a fishing vessel that became disabled on Wednesday (9 October), just hours before the hurricane made landfall. He managed to radio the Coast Guard station in St Petersburg before losing communication at around 6:45pm. On Thursday, search crews located him drifting about 48 kilometres offshore, clinging to the open ice box. This dramatic video released by the Coast Guard shows a diver being lowered from a helicopter to swim to the man and rescue him.

Stuti Mishra12 October 2024 09:30

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Polk County officers helped woman who went into labor during Milton

Julia Musto12 October 2024 09:00

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Climate crisis increased rainfall from Hurricane Milton, study finds

Rainfall from Hurricane Milton was increased by 20 to 30 per cent because of the climate crisis, according to a new rapid analysis by World Weather Attribution.

Storms like Milton are now about twice as likely as they would have been without human-caused warming, the group found.

The climate crisis also made wind speeds from the hurricane approximately 10 per cent stronger.

World Weather Attribution said their findings for Milton are similar to those following Hurricane Helene.

Hotter ocean temperatures are known to supercharge hurricanes, helping them intensify. In recent years more hurricanes have been rapidly intensifying, reaching Category 5, the highest on the scale. Milton is the quickest storm on record to rapidly intensify up to Category 5 in the Gulf of Mexico.

Stuti Mishra12 October 2024 08:30

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Aerial photos show destroyed houses in Florida after Hurricane Milton

Stuti Mishra12 October 2024 08:05

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Hillsborough County Fire Rescue have saved 104 pets so far

Stuti Mishra12 October 2024 07:30

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‘Significant river flooding' expected to continue for the coming days to weeks

Hurricane Milton has exited Florida but the risk of flooding from overflowing rivers is expected to continue for days to weeks, the National Weather Service has warned.

"Widespread moderate and major flooding is occurring in Central Florida and St Johns River Basin, with record flooding occurring or forecast to occur at four locations," the

Southeast River Forecast Center (SERFC) of NWS said.

"River flooding is expected to last for days to weeks."

While little to no rain is expected in the Southeast for the next several days, river levels are expected to continue rising at many locations due to routed flows from rain that already fell.

Stuti Mishra12 October 2024 06:52

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There’s no immediate tropical threat to Florida after Milton

Social media rumors about another storm hitting Florida are untrue, FOX 13 Tampa meteorologists stressed Friday.

“Let’s put it this way: could something develop in the northwestern Caribbean Sea and end up over us in ten days? It’s not a zero percent chance,” Chief Meteorologist Paul Dellegatto said. “But of all the things that could happen, I would say it’s less than 5 or 10 percent.”

Dellegatto emphasized that nothing is currently brewing in the Caribbean Sea, adding that “there’s not even a cloud there.”

Stuti Mishra12 October 2024 06:30

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