Hurricane Milton makes landfall in Florida as Category 3 storm

Hurricane Milton moved off the coast of east-central Florida at around 5 a.m. Thursday morning, according to the National Hurricane Center and Fox Weather.

The storm is still producing damaging hurricane-force winds and heavy rains.

The hurricane center said there is a danger of life-threatening storm surge along the coast from east-central Florida northward to southern Georgia, where a storm surge warning remains in effect.

Damaging hurricane-force winds, especially in gusts, will continue for a few more hours in east-central and northeastern Florida, the hurricane center said.

It said heavy rainfall across the central to northern Florida Peninsula through Thursday morning continues to bring the risk of considerable flash and urban flooding, as well as moderate to major river flooding, especially in areas where coastal and inland flooding combine to increase the overall flood threat.

Storm surge flooding is currently underway in Florida, with major flooding seen from Naples to Sarasota amid Hurricane Milton.

Some areas have been hit with up to 10 feet of water surging in from the Gulf, according to Fox Weather, which noted that storm surge flooding becomes a concern for the Atlantic Coast as the storm moves across the Florida peninsula.

Up to 5 feet of storm surge is expected from Jacksonville to Cape Canaveral, Fox Weather reported. Because the center of the hurricane arrived onshore south of Tampa, Tampa Bay will not face the historic storm surge flooding that had been feared.

Milton will move into the Atlantic Ocean in the middle of Thursday morning and before making its way into the open waters of the ocean throughout the day.

A storm surge is when there is an abnormal rise in the level of ocean water to above its normal level during a storm, such as Hurricane Milton in this case, according to the National Weather Service.

Similar to how a storm's sustained winds do not include the potential for even stronger winds, a storm surge does not include the wave height above the mean water level of the surge itself, according to The Associated Press.

A surge is also the amount above what the normal tide is at the time, so a 15-foot storm surge at high tide with additional 10-foot waves can level buildings with ease, knock down bridges and destroy anything in its path.

A storm surge watch is when there is a possibility of life-threatening inundation from rising water moving inland from the shoreline somewhere within the watch area, generally within 48 hours, according to Fox Weather.

A warning, meanwhile, is when there is a danger of life-threatening inundation from rising water moving inland from the shoreline somewhere within the warning area, generally within 36 hours, according to the outlet.

More than three million customers are now without power Thursday morning in Florida after Hurricane Milton made landfall Wednesday night.

At least 116 tornado warnings were issued on Wednesday in response to Hurricane Milton, Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis said.

Hurricane Milton was downgraded to a Category 1 storm early Thursday morning, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The hurricane was a Category 3 when it made landfall in Florida Wednesday night before later being downgraded to a Category 2 and then a Category 1.

Orlando, Florida, officials announced that police and firefighters have been pulled from the roads to shelter in place due to high winds during Hurricane Milton.

The city said winds have exceeded 40 mph.

When the wind speed decreases, the city said, emergency services will be able to respond to calls for service.

Residents are also urged to continue to shelter in place.

St. Petersburg, Florida, is shutting off potable water, which is drinking water, at midnight because of a water line break amid Hurricane Milton.

City officials said a major water main break will impact potable water services across the entire city, according to Fox 13.

The water will remain shut off until necessary repairs can be made, and repairs will begin when it is safe for crews to be outside.

Affected areas may already be experiencing low water pressure or service interruptions.

The city is issuing a boil water notice for all potable water used for drinking, cooking, and brushing teeth until further notice. After the system is restored, further testing will be done to ensure the water is safe before the boil water notice is lifted.

St. Lucie County, Florida, Sheriff Keith Pearson said Wednesday night that 17 tornadoes hit the county.

Pearson also confirmed multiple fatalities during an appearance on Fox Weather.

"We can confirm 17 tornadoes hit St. Lucie County, Florida, with multiple fatalities, a rescue mission ongoing, and hundreds of homes destroyed," he said.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom said he is deploying over 300 emergency personnel to help Florida with the impact of Hurricane Milton.

"When disaster hits, Americans stands united to help one another," Newsom wrote in a post on X.

"California has deployed 354 emergency personnel to Florida to help with hurricane response. Floridians -- please stay safe and follow all emergency warnings," Newsom continued.

Hurricane Milton made landfall in near Tampa before 9 p.m. local time Wednesday as a Category 3 Storm. More than 1 million residents were reported without power.  

Florida GOP Sen. Rick Scott said Wednesday night that people in the path of Hurricane Milton need to hunker down because there is nowhere to go and nobody who can rescue them at the moment, as the storm is too dangerous for emergency services to drive on the roads in some areas.

"We're going to see deadly storm surge," Scott said on Fox News' "Hannity" Wednesday night. "So I hope everybody got out of harm's way. We are hearing was just like two days ago in that, that killed 25 Floridians. So we're going to -- and then now where we're we've got rain, unbelievable amounts of rain that going to go up through Orlando. So what you're going to get is you're going to get flooding, you're going to get downed trees. You're going to have a lot of people without power. You have electrical lines down."

"You have no choice now, you have to hunker down," he continued. "There's no place to go. You've got to keep yourself alive because nobody can come and save you right now. It's too dangerous."

Scott added: "As soon as they can, all of our first responders will go see what they can do to save your life if you're in harm's way. But after that, you've got to continue to be careful. These trees might fall on you. You can't touch a downed power line. You got to know how to use a power saw, you got to know how to use a generator. You might without water, sewer and electricity. So this is going to take the locals doing their job, you doing your job, the state doing its job, and the federal government doing its job."

During his campaign rally in Scranton, Pennsylvania on Wednesday evening, former president Donald Trump opened the rally with a prayer for everyone in the path of Hurricane Milton.

“Before we begin, I want to send our prayers to the people in Florida getting hit right now with a violent Hurricane—as well as to all the people still recovering from Hurricane Helene. We are praying for them—and ask God to keep them safe,” Trump shared in post on his social media platform, Truth Social, with the video attached.

Hurricane Milton is now a Category 2 hurricane, with 110 mph winds as it continues moving inland after making landfall in Florida as a Category 3.

Roughly 1.5 million homes and businesses in the Sunshine State are without power now.

Fox News Digital’s Landon Mion contributed to this report.

Officials in Sumter County, Florida, announced that all emergency services have been ended because of the hazardous conditions caused by Hurricane Milton.

"As sustained winds reach 45 mph, emergency vehicles, including fire and rescue services, are unable to operate safely. These hazardous conditions make it extremely dangerous for responders to navigate the roads, putting both their safety and that of individuals in need at risk," the county said in a statement.

Hurricane Milton is now a Category 2 hurricane, with 110 mph winds as it continues moving inland after making landfall in Florida as a Category 3.

Roughly 1.5 million homes and businesses in the Sunshine State are without power now.

Following his news conference on Hurricane Milton, President Biden called the mayor of Sarasota to offer federal government assistance to residents in need.

“The President wanted to see if there is anything we need in Sarasota to let him know. He understands this is going to be an unprecedented type of hurricane and also understands it will take a lot from the federal government to help us recover in Sarasota,” Mayor Liz Alpert said in a statement.

“We’re grateful for the support and thank President Biden for reaching out,” said Mayor Liz Alpert.

Mayor Alpert also received a call of support from U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg earlier this week as we prepared for the historic storm.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said Wednesday night that the people of Florida are in his prayers as Hurricane Milton makes landfall in the Sunshine State.

"Our prayers are with the people of Florida tonight as they endure Hurricane Milton," he wrote on the social media platform X.

FOX Weather has confirmed the first deaths from Hurricane Milton out of St. Lucie County, Florida.

While the sheriff’s office did not give a specific number, they confirmed that there were “multiple” fatalities from tornadoes that struck the area today.

Hurricane Milton made landfall late Wednesday evening in the Tampa region as a Category 3 Storm. 

NASA’s Kennedy Space Center entered HURCON 1 ahead of Hurricane Milton making landfall later Wednesday.

The center wrote on X it was “now closed, with the exception of essential emergency response personnel and Ride Out Team members.”

Hurricane Milton made landfall in near Tampa before 9 p.m. local time Wednesday as a Category 3 Storm. More than 1 million residents were reported without power.  

More than 1 million Floridians were without power late Wednesday as Hurricane Milton made landfall as a Category 3 Storm.

According to poweroutage.us, which tracks power outages across the country, more than 1.16 million Floridians were without power as of 9:20 p.m. local time.

The power outages were concentrated in the Tampa Bay region which is home to more than 3.3 million people.

Until Wednesday, the area had managed to avoid getting hit directly by a hurricane for over a century.