Florida residents slogged through flooded streets, gathered up scattered debris, and assessed damage to their homes on Friday after Hurricane Milton smashed through coastal communities and spawned a barrage of deadly tornadoes.

At least 10 people were dead, and rescuers were still saving people from swollen rivers, but 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.

Gov. Ron DeSantis warned people to not let down their guard, however, citing ongoing safety threats including downed power lines and standing water that could hide dangerous objects.

“We’re now in the period where you have fatalities that are preventable,” Mr. DeSantis said. “You have to make the proper decisions and know that there are hazards out there.”

About 2.2 million customers remained without power in the State, according to poweroutage.us. St. Petersburg’s 260,000 residents were told to boil water before drinking, cooking, or brushing their teeth, until at least Monday.

On Friday, the owner of a major phosphate mine disclosed that pollution spilled into Tampa Bay during the hurricane.

The Mosaic Company said in a statement that heavy rains from the storm overwhelmed a collection system at its Riverview site, pushing excess water out of a manhole and into discharges that lead to the bay. The company said the leak was fixed Thursday.

Mosaic said the spill likely exceeded a 17,500-gallon minimum reporting standard, though it did not provide a figure for what the total volume might have been.

Calls and emails to Mosaic seeking additional information about Riverview and the company’s other Florida mines received no response, as did a voicemail left with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

The State has 25 such stacks containing more than 1 billion tons of phosphogypsum, a solid waste byproduct of the phosphate fertilizer mining industry that contains radium, which decays to form radon gas. Both radium and radon are radioactive and can cause cancer. Phosphogypsum may also contain toxic heavy metals and other carcinogens, such as arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury and nickel.

Florida’s vital tourism industry has started to return to normal, meanwhile, as Walt Disney World and other theme parks reopened. The state’s busiest airport, in Orlando, resumed full operations Friday.

Arriving just two weeks after the devastating Hurricane Helene, Milton flooded barrier islands, tore the roof off the Tampa Bay Rays ‘ baseball stadium and toppled a construction crane.

Crews from the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office on Friday were assisting with rescues of people, including a 92-year-old woman, who were stranded in rising waters along the Alafia River. The river is 25 miles (40km) long and runs from eastern Hillsborough County, east of Tampa, into Tampa Bay.

In Pinellas County, deputies used high-water vehicles to shuttle people back and forth to their homes in a flooded Palm Harbor neighborhood where waters continued to rise.

Ashley Cabrera left with her 18- and 11-year-old sons and their three dogs, Eeyore, Poe and Molly. It was the first time since Milton struck that they had been able to leave the neighborhood, and they were now headed to a hotel in Orlando.

“I’m extremely thankful that we could get out now and go for the weekend somewhere we can get a hot meal and some gas,” Ms. Cabrera said. “I thought we’d be able to get out as soon as the storm was over. These roads have never flooded like this in all the years that I’ve lived here.”

Animals were being saved, too. Cindy Evers helped rescue a large pig stuck in high water at a strip mall in Lithia, east of Tampa. She had already rescued a donkey and several goats after the storm.

“I’m high and dry where I’m at, and I have a barn and 9 acres,” Ms. Evers said, adding that she will soon start to work to find the animals’ owners.

In the Gulf Coast city of Venice, Milton left behind several feet of sand in some beachfront condos, with one unit nearly filled. A swimming pool was packed full of sand, with only its handrails poking out.

Some warnings were heeded and lessons learned. When 8 feet (2.4 meters) of seawater flooded Punta Gorda during Hurricane Helene last month, 121 people had to be rescued, Mayor Lynne Matthews said. Milton brought at least 5 feet (1.5 meters) of flooding, but rescuers only had to save three people.

“So people listened to the evacuation order,” Mr. Matthews said.

Heaps of fruit were scattered across the ground and trees toppled over after both Milton and Hurricane Helene swept through Polk County and other orange-growing regions, Matt Joyner of trade group Florida Citrus Mutual said Friday.

Milton arrived at the start of the orange growing season, so it is still too early to evaluate the full scope of the damage.

Florida has already seen orange production diminish over the years, with the industry still recovering from hurricanes of years past while also waging an ongoing battle against a deadly greening disease. Milton could be the knockout punch for some growers, Mr. Joyce said.

In the western coastal city of Clearwater, Kelvin Glenn said it took less than an hour early Thursday for water to rise to his waist inside his apartment. He and seven children, ranging in age from 3 to 16, were trapped in the brown, foul floodwaters for about three hours before an upstairs neighbor opened their home to them.

Later that day, first responders arrived in boats to ferry them away from the building.

“Sitting in that cold, nasty water was kind of bad,” Mr. Glenn said.

Short-term survival is now turning into long-term worries. A hotel is $160 a night. Everything inside Mr. Glenn’s apartment is gone. And it can take time to get assistance.

“I ain’t going to say we’re homeless,” Mr. Glenn said. “But we’ve got to start all over again.”

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has enough money to deal with the immediate needs of people impacted by Helene and Milton but will need additional funding at some point, FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell said Friday.

The disaster assistance fund helps pay for the swift response to hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, and other disasters. Congress recently replenished the fund with $20 billion — the same amount as last year.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has released dramatic satellite footage capturing Hurricane Milton’s landfall in Florida, showcasing the sheer power of the storm from a cosmic perspective. The footage, released Thursday, illustrates the hurricane’s spiralling mass over the southeasternmost US state, featuring intense lightning activity that illuminates its centre.

Milton struck Florida’s west coast near Siesta Key on Wednesday as a Category 3 hurricane, forming a striking image of its eye encircled by dense cloud bands stretching hundreds of miles. The satellite visuals highlight the storm’s massive impact on a wide area of Florida and neighbouring states.

“This imagery from NOAA’s GOES-East provides visible cloud imagery every 30 seconds of Hurricane Milton as it pushes closer to Florida. Notice the frequent lightning being detected by the satellite’s GLM instrument as well,” the caption reads.

One of the most eye-catching aspects of the imagery is the frequent lightning flashes observed in southern Florida, where multiple tornadoes formed during the storm’s passage. This captivating light show within the storm system underscores the extreme weather conditions experienced on the ground.

Milton moved across central Florida on Thursday, leaving a trail of destruction. With winds reaching up to 120 miles per hour at landfall, the hurricane caused extensive damage, uprooting trees, destroying homes, and leaving nearly 2 million people without power across the state.

Meteorologists and emergency management officials are monitoring satellite data to track Milton’s trajectory and intensity. This information is vital for issuing timely alerts and coordinating emergency response efforts.

Although Milton has since weakened to a Category 1 hurricane, it continues to pose serious risks as it travels further inland.

Sarasota, United States:

Hurricane Milton blasted ashore in Florida Wednesday night with furious winds, life-threatening rain and storm surge, as people who endured another hurricane just two weeks ago braced for a long, violent night.

The “extremely dangerous” Category 3 storm made landfall near Siesta Key, in a densely populated area on the state’s western coast, the National Hurricane Center said in an 8:30 pm (0030 GMT Thursday) bulletin.

“So the storm is here. It’s time for every one to hunker down,” Governor Ron DeSantis told a press conference just before Milton’s arrival.

Life-threatening storm surge, extreme winds and flash flooding were happening across the central Florida peninsula, the NHC said.

Tidal surges are expected to inundate western Florida’s heavily populated and low-lying Gulf Coast amid fears of widespread chaos and possible fatalities.

Milton is later expected to rip through inland areas to the Atlantic Ocean, with tourist hub Orlando — home to Walt Disney World — in its path.

As it hit land Milton was packing sustained winds moving at 120 miles (205 kilometers) per hour, with potential for as much as 13 feet (four meters) of storm surge, the NHC said.

In cities up and down Florida’s western coast, the wind howled furiously and torrential rain fell as frightened people took shelter wherever they could.

In the city of Sarasota, near Siesta Key, gusts of wind blew panes of glass from buildings on the waterfront. The streets were deserted. Trees swayed almost horizontal, barely able to withstand the wind. Businesses were shuttered and sandbagged.

On a wooden board fixed against a window of an old red brick building, someone wrote: “Be kind Milton.”

Just before landfall DeSantis said it was too late and too dangerous to evacuate anyone so people had to stay put and weather the storm wherever they were.

“Stay inside and stay off the roads. Flood waters and rushing storm surge are very dangerous,” the governor said.

The airports in Tampa and Sarasota were closed until further notice.

‘The other storm’

Milton hit just two weeks after another major hurricane, Helene, hit Florida and other southeastern states with devastating and deadly effect.

“I am nervous. This is something we just went through with the other storm — ground saturated, still recovering from that,” Randy Prior, who owns a pool business, told AFP.

Prior, 36, says he plans to ride out the storm at home, after recently toughing out Hurricane Helene, which sparked flooding in Florida before wreaking havoc across remote areas further inland such as western North Carolina.

The Weather Channel reported “numerous tornadoes” touching down in central and southern Florida.

With the storm coming immediately after lethal Helene hit the US southeast, presidential candidate Donald Trump has sought political advantage by falsely saying aid is channeled away from residents, many of whom are supporters of his Republican Party, and toward migrants.

At the White House on Wednesday, President Joe Biden slammed the Republican former president and current candidate’s “onslaught of lies.”

“There’s been a reckless, irresponsible and relentless promotion of disinformation and outright lies,” Biden said in angry remarks.

Vice President Kamala Harris, who is taking on Trump at the polls, echoed Biden’s criticisms in a separate telephone interview with CNN.

“It is dangerous, it is unconscionable, frankly, that anyone who’d consider themselves a leader would mislead desperate people to the point that those desperate people would not receive the aid to which they are entitled,” she said.

Across the southeastern United States, emergency workers are still struggling to provide relief after Helene, which killed at least 235 people.

Scientists say global warming has a role in intense storms as warmer ocean surfaces release more water vapor, providing additional energy for storms, which exacerbates their winds.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Washington:

Hurricane Milton, the Category 4 storm headed toward the southeastern United States, could be the worst to hit Florida in a century, President Joe Biden said on Tuesday.

“This could be the worst storm to hit Florida in over a century. God willing it won’t be, but that’s what it’s looking like right now,” Joe Biden told reporters at the White House.

“You should evacuate now, now, now. You should have already evacuated. It’s a matter of life and death, and that’s not hyperbole,” he said as advisors briefed him on the storm.

Mr Biden said he had postponed a planned trip to Angola and Germany this week because “I just don’t think I can be out of the country at this time.”

He said he would try to reschedule the visits.

Mr Biden also condemned misinformation that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and his party have spread about hurricane relief efforts ahead of next month’s US election.

“Those who do it, do it to try to damage the administration,” Mr Biden said.

He said that “we can take care of ourselves” but expressed concern about the impact that it could have on the ground.

“It’s un-American. It really is. People are scared to death. People know their lives are at stake, all that they’ve worked for, all that they own, all that they value,” he said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)