Hurricane Milton makes landfall near Sarasota. Half-million already without power

MIAMI — Hurricane Milton made landfall on Siesta Key just before 8:30 p.m. Eastern time Wednesday as the Category 3 storm continued lashing the Gulf Coast with heavy rains, whipping winds while spinning off a string of tornadoes across much of the peninsula.

Milton’s eye had been pushing ashore for hours before the National Hurricane Center made the official landfall call on the barrier island along the coast of Sarasota County.

The hurricane came in just south of Tampa Bay, potentially sparking the heavily populated and vulnerable region from the worst flooding. But Tampa Bay and much of the Gulf Coast still faced whopping 120 mph sustained winds and higher gusts. And communities south of the landfall could see double-digit storm surge, including Fort Myers Beach and down to the Naples area.

Milton is expected to hold onto hurricane strength as it tears inland, crossing south of Orlando before spitting out near the Space Coast. The bulk of its rain — up to 18 inches in the worst spots — is due to fall north of the eye’s path, drenching the already-soaked central Florida area and sparking several flash flood warnings Wednesday night.

Tornadoes ravaged the southern end of the state, touching down in Fort Myers, Fort Pierce, Palm Beach Gardens, St. Lucie County, and even as far south as Broward County, where they ripped off roofs and razed buildings. The National Weather Service issued about 100 tornado warnings between noon and 6 p.m.

As the powerful storm moved ashore, water levels rose in Tampa and near Naples, which saw similar levels of storm surge to Hurricane Helene before the sun had even set. By nightfall, Sarasota recorded at least 6 feet of storm surge. A steady drizzle flooded streets on the other coast, in St. Augustine.

Nearly a half-million people were reported without power by 8 p.m., mostly in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties.

While the full toll of Milton’s likely lethal surge won’t be clear until the sun rises, it does appear that the worst-case scenario of a two-story building-level storm surge in the densely populated Tampa Bay was avoided.

As predicted by the hurricane center, Milton’s eye came ashore just south of the mouth of the bay. A 40-mile jog would have been the difference between what is sure to be a catastrophic scenario for hundreds of thousands of people and a nightmare scenario.

As winds whipped the Gulf coast and pushed at least 6 feet of storm surge ashore, calls for help came pouring in.

“We will be ready to help people in harm’s way,” said Gov Ron DeSantis in a Wednesday evening news conference. “Hopefully there aren’t a lot.”

He noted that because Milton came in earlier than initially expected, rescues could begin in just a few hours.

“It means that pretty much all the rescues are going to be done in the dark,” he said. “That’s fine. Our folks are going to do it.”

Officials ready to recover

Florida Power and Light President and CEO Armando Pimentel said Wednesday afternoon that the company had over 17,000 workers from over 40 states stationed and ready to help restore power when it was safe to do so. Some had already begun restoration in Southwest Florida in between Milton’s bands, he said.

“We anticipate a challenging environment restoring power,” Pimentel said.

Historically, he said, FPL has been able to provide estimated restoration times for counties across the state roughly 24 hours after the storm, and are prepared to do so again.

DeSantis, in a Wednesday afternoon news conference, said that the state had 50,000 lineworkers from multiple states, including FPL’s force, ready to restore power in “the largest storm mobilization in the history of the state of Florida.”

Federal officials also said they’re in place and ready for Milton.

FEMA says the Biden administration has ordered 1,200 search and rescue personnel from FEMA, the Coast Guard and Defense Department to preposition in the state to immediately respond to Milton, supplementing 1,000 who are already on the ground. Millions of meal packets have already been sent to the state in advance of landfall. The emergency response agency also says that 30 high-water vehicles and helicopters, as well as 500 ambulances, have already deployed to the state.

FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell said she plans to work side by side with DeSantis. A national team is directly embedded in the city of Tampa, “so we can have a seamless flow of communication as they are experiencing the impacts, and we can help provide the resources they need for those initial life-saving efforts,” Criswell said during a Wednesday news briefing.