See it: Destruction caused by Hurricane Milton’s tornado outbreak, 100-mph winds in Florida

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Hurricane Milton left scars along a huge area of the Florida Peninsula over 24 hours with a trail of destruction from South Florida to Central Florida’s east coast shores. 

Hurricane Milton made landfall around 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, bringing estimated peak winds of 120 mph on Florida’s Gulf Coast before charging across the state. Hours before Milton came ashore in Siesta Key, the impacts of the hurricane’s fierce outer bands were being felt across South and Central Florida, spawning multiple tornadoes and prompting more than 125 Tornado Warnings miles from where Milton made landfall.

Homes and businesses were damaged in South and South-Central Florida. At least five people were killed by multiple tornadoes in St. Lucie County. at the Spanish Lakes Country Club, a retirement community in Fort Pierce. 

HURRICANE MILTON SPAWNS DEADLY TORNADO OUTBREAK IN SOUTH FLORIDA: ‘HUNDREDS OF HOMES’ DESTROYED

St. Lucie County Sheriff Keith Pearson said St. Lucie County had 17 confirmed tornadoes devastating the area.

Milton’s more than 100 mph winds turned debris left by Hurricane Helene just two weeks ago into flying weapons, tossing around furniture and trees across Venice Beach, Florida, and pushing sand inland on coastal communities. 

Low-lying areas more than an hour from either coast saw flooding from Milton’s rainfall, including in Lakeland, about 40 minutes south of Orlando, where FOX Weather Storm Chaser Mark Suddath recorded the video below.

The Lakeland community of mobile homes was partially submerged in flooding the morning after Milton’s landfall.

Some communities in West and Central Florida received more than a foot of rainfall, leading to urban flooding and water rescues in communities of Tampa and Orlando. 

Orlando is home to more than 100 lakes. With Milton’s rainfall, many lakes swelled, sending water surging into surrounding neighborhoods and closing roads. 

The cleanup on Florida’s Gulf Coast had only just begun from Hurricane Helene when Milton arrived. There was a massive effort to move debris piles to inland landfills in time for the new hurricane.

A wind gust up to 102 mph was recorded in St. Petersburg, where a crane crashed into a downtown building.

Milton’s winds shredded the dome of Tropicana Field where the Tampa Bay Rays play. More than 18 inches of rain fell in the area, leading to localized flooding. 

Wind gusts in Orlando and Daytona Beach reached 87 mph.

Milton blasted Central Florida with hurricane-force winds even hours after landfall, knocking down street lights on Church Street in downtown Orlando and taking out the power to more than 3 million customers across the Sunshine State. 

Cleanup efforts continue across Florida from Hurricane Milton’s tornado outbreak, damaging winds and flooding. The Atlantic hurricane season ends Nov. 30.