The Most Shocking Images of Hurricane Milton Damage So Far

Hurricane Milton made landfall with the eastbound seashore of Florida connected Wednesday nighttime arsenic a Category 3 storm, wiping retired powerfulness for astir 3 cardinal radical and bringing devastating upwind and rain. Tornadoes connected the eastbound seashore of Florida caused their ain harm to beingness and property, and the photos that are emerging successful the airy of time are devastating.

The wrong of a mini mart of a section state presumption is near damaged by a tornado caused by Hurricane Milton, connected October 10, 2024 successful Port St Lucie, Florida. (Photo by Saul Martinez/Getty Images)

At slightest 10 radical person died from the storms truthful far, according to Alejandro Mayorkas, the caput of Homeland Security, who reported the decease toll portion calling successful via video league connected Thursday day astatine the White House regular press conference.

Mayorkas was dialing successful remotely from North Carolina, wherever he’s presently overseeing the betterment efforts from Hurricane Helene which has decimated the occidental information of the state, an country of precocious altitude wherever the immense bulk of radical don’t person flood insurance.

Destroyed homes aft Hurricane Milton successful St. Pete Beach, Florida, US, connected Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024.  Photographer: Tristan Wheelock/Bloomberg via Getty Images

“Milton whitethorn person passed, but the information it poses has not,” Mayorkas said. “Downed powerfulness lines, flood waters, non-potable drinking water, and debris are creating deadly conditions. Keep listening to section officials and structure successful spot until it is safe, if told to bash so. Only usage generators erstwhile and wherever it is harmless to bash so. You tin find much tips connected staying harmless aft a tempest connected the FEMA app oregon by visiting ready.gov.”

“Structures person been severely damaged oregon collapsed, and tragically, we cognize that lives person been lost. We are praying for them and their loved ones,” Mayorkas said astatine Thursday’s property conference.

One of those damaged buildings is the Tampa Bay Times’s gathering successful downtown St. Petersburg wherever a operation crane collapsed connected the eight-story building, causing an tremendous hole.

A instrumentality enforcement serviceman inspects spot harm aft Hurricane Milton made landfall successful St. Petersburg, Florida, US, connected Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. Photographer: Tristan Wheelock/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Social media has been flooded with conspiracy theories astir some Hurricane Milton and Hurricane Helene, including the thought that Democrats tin power the upwind and steered the hurricanes into predominantly Republican areas successful an effort to assistance Donald Trump. In different era, that benignant of nonsense would’ve been relegated to the fringes of society, but present successful the 2020s it’s going viral connected sites similar X and being dispersed by sitting members of Congress.

“Yes they tin power the weather. It’s ridiculous for anyone to prevarication and accidental it can’t beryllium done,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia tweeted last week successful the archetypal of what would beryllium aggregate tweets precocious insisting determination was a hurricane-control conspiracy going on.

Employees cod immoderate of their belongings from a quality salon that was destroyed by the aggravated tornado that deed Cocoa Beach, Florida, connected October 10, 2024. (Photo by GIORGIO VIERA / AFP)

The net has besides been flooded with fake and mislabeled images purporting to beryllium from Hurricane Milton, including ridiculous AI-generated photos that supposedly show Walt Disney World successful Florida wholly flooded. In reality, the taxable parkland plans to reopen connected Friday.

Secretary Mayorkas addressed the disinformation successful the White House property league connected Thursday, stressing that it does origin problems successful the existent world.

“So fto maine repetition that, successful fact, the mendacious accusation that is being dispersed deliberately does person a real-life interaction connected survivors, and it is besides demoralizing for those heroic individuals who are risking their lives successful the work of others,” Mayorkas said.

Mayorkas adjacent gave an illustration of however that accusation is hindering the rescue efforts connected the ground.

“There is mendacious accusation that national employees who are determination to assistance radical volition really instrumentality their land,” Mayorkas explained, “and what we person seen is radical reticent, reluctant to entree the alleviation to which they are entitled and which volition assistance them due to the fact that of the fearfulness that that mendacious accusation has instilled successful them. That is conscionable 1 example.”

Water begins to recede from flooded streets successful Tampa, Florida, owed to Hurricane Milton connected October 10, 2024. (Photo by Bryan R. SMITH / AFP)

Residents of St. Petersburg, Gulfport, South Pasadena, and Lealman are being told to boil h2o since truthful galore h2o mains person broken.

“Last night, the City made the hard determination to unopen disconnected potable (drinking) h2o owed to large h2o main breaks from Hurricane Milton,” St. Petersburg said successful a connection posted to the city’s website. “Crews are making repairs and potable h2o is backmost on, though unit whitethorn beryllium low. Once the strategy is pressurized, h2o work should resume arsenic normal. However, a citywide boil h2o announcement has been issued for each h2o customers. This includes residents of St. Petersburg, Gulfport, South Pasadena, and Lealman.”

Lakewood Park Church is near damaged by a tornado caused by Hurricane Milton, connected October 10, 2024 successful Port St Lucie, Florida. (Photo by Saul Martinez/Getty Images)

The metropolis of St. Petersburg notes that immoderate non-bottled h2o intended for activities similar drinking, brushing your teeth oregon cooking should beryllium boiled first.

“According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), usage boiled oregon bottled h2o for drinking, cooking, brushing teeth, oregon cleaning during the boil h2o announcement period. To boil water, bring h2o to a afloat rolling boil for 1 infinitesimal and let the h2o to chill earlier use,” the metropolis explained.

A drone representation shows a flooded thoroughfare owed to Hurricane Milton successful Siesta Key, Florida, connected October 10, 2024. (Photo by Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo / AFP)

Spectrum Internet has received implicit 8,000 reports of issues from net users successful the Hurricane Milton path, according to DownDetector, which sent Gizmodo a study Thursday afternoon. Issues with connecting to the net were the apical contented (35%), with full outages and a deficiency of awesome representing 26% and 23% respectively, DownDetector reports.

Debris successful beforehand of buildings aft Hurricane Milton successful St. Pete Beach, Florida, US, connected Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. Photographer: Tristan Wheelock/Bloomberg

Thankfully, 1 of the agleam spots successful the aftermath of the tempest is that Tampa and its tremendous colonisation person truthful acold been spared deaths from the hurricane. There was immoderate interest that a nonstop deed connected Tampa would make adjacent much harm and nonaccomplishment of life.

“Tampa Bay was spared successful the last hours from the predicted catastrophic tempest surge,” Cathie Perkins, caput of exigency absorption for Pinellas County, said according to Reuters.

But that’s evidently tiny comfortableness to the radical successful different areas who are cleaning up aft the storm.

Kids locomotion past vehicles flooded successful the h2o arsenic the streets of the Southeast Seminole Heights conception of Tampa owed to Hurricane Milton connected October 10, 2024 successful Florida. (Photo by Bryan R. SMITH / AFP)

GoFundMe has created a hub of verified crowdfunding campaigns for anyone who’s looking however they tin donate straight to radical suffering from Hurricane Milton.

“In the past 2 weeks since Helene made landfall, much than $50 cardinal has been raised connected GoFundMe for hurricane relief, from much than 400,000 donors crossed each 50 U.S. states, with an mean donation magnitude of $120,” a spokesperson told Gizmodo successful a connection Thursday.

“We expect galore crossed the Southeast, particularly those impacted successful Florida, volition proceed to request enactment aft Milton. In response, GoFundMe has besides updated our Hurricane Relief Page with resources for donors looking to assistance and communities inactive recovering from Hurricane Helene.”

An American emblem flies, destroyed by the aggravated tornado that deed Cocoa Beach, Florida connected October 10, 2024. Hurricane Milton tore a coast-to-coast way of demolition crossed the US authorities of Florida, whipping up a spate of deadly tornadoes that near astatine slightest 4 radical dead, but avoiding the catastrophic devastation officials had feared. (Photo by Giorgio VIERA / AFP)

President Joe Biden gave a press conference Thursday day from the White House.

“I cognize betterment and rebuilding projects tin instrumentality a agelong and hard time, but arsenic agelong aft the property and the cameras determination on, I committedness you, you person to prime up the pieces still,” Biden said.

“I privation you to cognize everything connected our powerfulness to assistance you enactment pieces backmost unneurotic and get each that you need,” Biden continued. “God bless you and whitethorn God bless our troops and our archetypal responders. Many immoderate cases risking their lives to help.”