Hurricane Milton has made landfall as a Category 3 storm in western Florida early on Thursday, 10 October. The eye of the storm is expected to hit Florida's Gulf Coast and densely populated areas such as Tampa, St. Petersburg, Sarasota, and Fort Myers. However, Milton's winds weakened to 90 mph overnight, making it a lower Category 1 storm.
Hurricane Milton hit Florida with winds of 120 mph before battering the coast and producing a series of tornadoes around the state. The storm has brought lightning, persistent rainfall, and winds shaking palm trees. More than 1.5 million homes and businesses were without power in Sarasota County and neighbouring Manatee County, according to poweroutage.us, which tracks utility reports.
Residents in "evacuation zones," which are situated in Milton's expected pathway, were warned to evacuate and find alternative accommodation. Search and recovery teams are on standby until Hurricane Milton has passed through, as there is nothing they can do during the storm.