Photos: Hurricane Milton brings devastation across Florida

By Mhari Shaw,

Published October 9, 2024 at 9:22 PM PDT

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A woman walks along a flooded street in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton in Osprey, Florida. The hurricane made landfall as a Category 3 hurricane in the Siesta Key area.

For the latest Hurricane Milton updates, follow NPR's live blog.

Hurricane Milton is moving away from Florida and into the Atlantic Ocean. It has left catastrophic destruction and death behind it.

The hurricane made landfall south of Tampa last night. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis says that more than 80,000 people were ins shelters overnight. And he says authorities have started to assess the damage and see who needs help.

At least 4 people have been killed by tornadoes in St. Lucie county, on Florida’s eastern Atlantic Coast. Dozens of tornadoes spawned by the hurricane raked the state yesterday. Observers say these were far larger and powerful than Florida typically sees.

October 10

Two couples who evacuated get a ride back to their home through flooding after Hurricane Milton hit the region, Thursday, in Palm Harbor, Fla.

A young man looks on as cars are flooded in the water as the streets of the Southeast Seminole Heights section of Tampa due to Hurricane Milton on October 10, 2024 in Fla.

People walk near storm damaged beachside property in Venice, Florida on Thursday.

Cars move slowly after Hurricane Milton damaged power lines, in Matlacha, Fla.

A local resident observes a tree which fell on his house in Kissimmee, Fla. Hurricane Milton tore a coast-to-coast path of destruction across the US state of Florida, whipping up a spate of deadly tornadoes that left at least four people dead, but avoiding the catastrophic devastation officials had feared.

A house, center, lies toppled off its stilts after the passage of Hurricane Milton, alongside an empty lot where a home was swept away by Hurricane Helen, in Bradenton Beach on Anna Maria Island, Fla., on Thursday.

Fred Hill gets a few drinks from his destroyed home after it was hit by a tornado and flooding caused by Hurricane Milton, Thursday, in Matlacha, Fla.

A water rescue team member walks through flood waters at an apartment complex in Clearwater, Fla.

A drone image shows a flooded street due to Hurricane Milton in Siesta Key, Florida, on October 10, 2024. At least four people were confirmed killed as a result of two tornadoes triggered by Hurricane Milton on the east coast of the US state of Florida, local authorities said Thursday. — A drone image shows a flooded street due to Hurricane Milton in Siesta Key, Florida, on October 10, 2024.

People are rescued from an apartment complex in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Clearwater, Fla.

A view shows a collapsed construction crane that fell on the building that also hosts the offices of the Tampa Bay Times, after Hurricane Milton made landfall, in downtown St. Petersburg, Fla., on Thursday.

In this aerial view, Flood waters inundate a neighborhood after Hurricane Milton came ashore in Punta Gorda, Florida. The storm made landfall as a Category 3 hurricane in the Siesta Key area of Florida, causing damage and flooding throughout Central Florida.

An aerial view of Tropicana Field's shredded roof in downtown St. Petersburg, Fla., in the wake of Hurricane Milton.

Debris along Commonwealth Drive clogs the roadway after Hurricane Milton made landfall nearby Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024 in Siesta Key, Fla.

Residents are rescued from an their second story apartment complex in Clearwater that was flooded from and overflowing creek due to Hurricane Milton in Florida. Hurricane Milton felled trees, tore roofs off buildings, and flooded streets, leaving residents of the Florida coast surveying a trail of destruction in a state still reeling from another massive storm two weeks earlier.

In this aerial view, Flood waters inundate a neighborhood after Hurricane Milton came ashore on October 10, 2024, in Punta Gorda, Florida. The storm made landfall as a Category 3 hurricane in the Siesta Key area of Florida, causing damage and flooding throughout Central Florida.

A crane sits on the street after crashing down into the building housing the Tampa Bay Times offices after the arrival of Hurricane Milton in St. Petersburg, Florida. Milton, which comes just after the recent catastrophic Hurricane Helene, landed into Florida's Gulf Coast late Wednesday evening as a Category 3 storm causing extensive flooding and damage.

Boats rest in a yard after they were washed ashore when Hurricane Milton passed through the area in Punta Gorda, Florida. The storm made landfall as a Category 3 hurricane in the Siesta Key area of Florida, causing damage and flooding throughout Central Florida.

Residents are rescued from an apartment complex in Clearwater that was flooded from and overflowing creek due to Hurricane Milton in Florida. Hurricane Milton felled trees, tore roofs off buildings, and flooded streets, leaving residents of the Florida coast surveying a trail of destruction on October 10, 2024, in a state still reeling from another massive storm two weeks earlier.

October 9

Brandon Marlow walks through surge waters flooding the street after Hurricane Milton came ashore in the Sarasota area in Fort Myers, Florida.

Christian Burke stands at the door of his home, where he, his mother, and his aunt plan to ride out Hurricane Milton on the third floor overlooking overlooking Tampa Bay, in Gulfport, Fla., Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. Burke, who said his engineer father built the concrete home to withstand a Category 5 hurricane, expects his raised ground floor to get up to 8 feet of water in Milton. A boat deposited by Hurricane Helene sits lodged in the bay front park outside his front door.

The Segundo family, who evacuated from nearby Davis Island, plays a board game with their dog Cassie looking on, as Hurricane Milton makes landfall on Florida's Gulf Coast, at Hyatt Place Tampa Downtown hotel in Tampa, Fla.,

Max Watts, of Buford, Ga., walks in the parking lot to check on a trailer parked outside the hotel where he is riding out Hurricane Milton with coworkers in Tampa, Fla. Watts, who works for a towing company, was deployed with colleagues to Florida to aid in the aftermath of the storm.

Robert Haight looks around his destroyed house after it was hit by a reported tornado in Fort Myers, Florida, as Hurricane Milton approaches.

Ron Rook, who said he was looking for people in need of help or debris to clear, walks through windy and rainy conditions on a deserted street in downtown Tampa, Fla.,

Flight check-in kiosks are seen covered in protective plastic at a deserted United Airlines check-in counter at Orlando International Airport ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Milton, in Orlando, Florida.

Payton Wyse (L) and Andrew Goncharsky pack what they can as they evacuate their apartment before Hurricane Milton's arrival in Fort Myers, Florida.

Salvador Gonzalez places plywood over the windows of a business before Hurricane Milton's arrival in Fort Myers, Florida.

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue's Urban Search and Rescue Florida Task Force One leader Brandon Webb, right, addresses members of the task force before they deploy ahead of Hurricane Milton in Doral, Fla.

October 8

Members of the Florida Army National Guard check for any remaining residents in nearly-deserted Bradenton Beach, where piles of debris from Hurricane Helene still sit outside damaged homes, ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Milton, Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024, on Anna Maria Island, Fla.

In this NASA handout, Hurricane Milton, a Category 5 storm at the time of this photograph, is pictured in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Yucatan Peninsula on October 8, 2024 seen from the International Space Station as it orbited 257 miles above.