Hurricane Milton has made landfall near Siesta Key, Florida, as a dangerous Category 3 storm. It is the fifth hurricane to make landfall in the US this year.
Devastating effects: Milton is bringing “an axis of extreme rainfall” to the Tampa Bay area, increasing the risk of deadly flash flooding, according to the National Weather Service. There are “multiple fatalities” in St. Lucie County, Florida, from a tornado outbreak earlier in the day, CNN affiliate WPTV reports.
A monster storm: Hurricane Milton’s wind field more than doubled in size since yesterday — meaning its disastrous impacts are being felt over a much larger area. Tropical-storm force winds are expected to cover the entire width of the Florida peninsula and stretch from Miami to Savannah by Thursday.
More than 9 inches of rain have fallen in only three hours as Hurricane Milton’s heaviest rain band has parked itself over the Tampa Bay area on Wednesday evening. This represents more than a 1-in-1000 rainfall for St. Petersburg.
It also means that more than three months of average rainfall for the city fell in only three hours.
The National Weather Service is warning that major flash flooding is ongoing or expected to begin shortly, and that will lead to life-threatening impacts.
Power outages in Florida have doubled in just over an hour, leaving more than 1.1 million homes and businesses in the dark as Hurricane Milton pummels the state, according to PowerOutage.us
The most significant outages are in Sarasota County, where Milton made landfall around 8:30 p.m. ET, and nearby Manatee and Hardee counties.
Outages are expected to climb as the storm’s tropical storm-force winds move inward across the state.
