Milton recovery efforts underway in Florida as 2.4M without power

(NewsNation) — Crews resumed rescue and recovery efforts Friday morning in Florida, working around the clock to help people in the wake of Hurricane Milton.

At least 10 storm-related deaths have been reported so far, according to the White House. NewsNation local affiliate WFLA reported that one of those killed was a Polk County employee who was helping with cleanup.

As of 7 a.m. ET Friday, more than 2.4 million customers remained without power in Florida, according to poweroutage.us.

Still, many expressed relief that Milton wasn’t worse. The hurricane spared densely populated Tampa a direct hit, and the lethal storm surge that scientists feared never materialized.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said that while the storm “was significant,” it “was not the worst-case scenario.” He noted that as he flew over some of the hard-hit areas, he saw that many homes that were built in recent years fared well.

“I’ve seen a lot of grit, I’ve seen a lot of determination and I’m very confident that this area is going to bounce back very, very quickly,” DeSantis said.

Hurricane Milton’s impact across Florida

Milton made landfall Wednesday evening in Siesta Key as a Category 3 storm. By Thursday afternoon, Milton had moved off Florida’s east coast and became a post-tropical cyclone that no longer had hurricane-force winds.

Following Hurricane Milton’s landfall, rescue crews have been surveying the damage, with those in north Tampa using airboats to reach people.

Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said crews have been working hard through the morning to reach those in need of help.

Arriving just two weeks after the devastating Hurricane Helene, the system knocked out power to more than 3 million customers, flooded barrier islands, tore the roof off the Tampa Bay Rays’ baseball stadium and toppled a construction crane.

Officials in hard-hit counties have warned people to beware of downed power lines, trees in roads, blocked bridges and flooding. Before Milton even made landfall, heavy rain and tornadoes lashed parts of southern Florida.

Just inland from Tampa, the flooding in Plant City was “absolutely staggering,” according to City Manager Bill McDaniel.

The National Weather Service said almost 19 inches of rain fell in the St. Petersburg area. A storm surge of 8 to 10 feet was reported in Sarasota County. Milton rapidly weakened to a Category 1 storm as it moved over land.

President Joe Biden called on Congress to move as fast as it could to get emergency funding to the Sunshine State.

DeSantis pledged to send whatever resources he could into Pinellas County communities Friday. It’s an area that was mostly spared during Milton but was hit hard by Hurricane Helene, resulting in 12 deaths two weeks prior.

According to the U.S. Coast Guard, the following ports are now open: Key West, Port Everglades, Port Miami and the Miami River. The following ports remain closed: St. Petersburg, Fort Myers, Fort of Palm Beach, Fort Pierce, Port Canaveral, Jacksonville and Fernandina.

Tourism business resumes after Hurricane Milton

As the cleanup continued, the state’s vital tourism industry was beginning to return to normal.

The Tampa International Airport will reopen Friday at 8 a.m. EDT after a three-day flight suspension due to Hurricane Milton.

The airport said it is working with the Federal Aviation Administration, Transportation Security Administration and other airlines to aim for a Friday morning reopening.

Flooding damaged a hangar Wednesday.

Florida theme parks including Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando and SeaWorld planned to reopen Friday after an assessment of the effects of Hurricane Milton.

Some Halloween special events won’t be offered and they won’t necessarily be fully functioning Friday, but the public is welcome back, the parks said in statements.

As Milton came ashore as a major storm Wednesday, all three Orlando-based parks shut down, putting a damper on the vacations of tens of thousands of tourists, many of whom hunkered down in hotels. Disney World, Universal and SeaWorld were all closed for at least part of Wednesday and all of Thursday.

Orlando International Airport, Florida’s busiest, resumed domestic arrivals Thursday and planned to resume departures Friday after mostly shutting down Wednesday.

In Tampa, the animals were safe at popular tourist attractions ZooTampa and The Florida Aquarium, which have aimed to reopen Saturday.

The 1,000 animals at the zoo will remain in their night houses and hurricane shelter locations while habitats are cleared of debris, a spokesperson said. The aquarium also confirmed its animals are “doing well.”

The zoo sustained some damage from the high winds and does not have power, and the spokesperson anticipates the debris cleanup and restoration, which is already underway, will take a few days.

All conservation parks, nature preserves, trails, neighborhood/specialty parks and athletic complexes in Hillsborough County will be closed until further notice.

Officials warn of hurricane relief scams

As relief efforts continue, the U.S. Department of Justice is alerting the public to a rise in scams aimed at exploiting victims of these disasters.

According to the DOJ, scammers are quick to exploit weather disasters and the people affected by them.

Officials also reminded people that if their property was damaged by both Helene and Milton, they would need to apply for disaster assistance twice, with separate applications for the damage from each storm.

Are more hurricanes heading for Florida?

As Milton exits Florida, the National Hurricane Center continues to monitor another system in the Atlantic, which is not expected to make landfall or come close to the U.S.

According to the National Hurricane Center’s 5 a.m. Friday advisory, Tropical Storm Leslie was about 1,600 miles west-southwest of the Azores, a group of islands in the mid-Atlantic, with maximum sustained winds of 65 mph.

The storm is expected to turn northeast and veer away from the U.S. over the next few days.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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