Destruction and flooding was widespread along Floridas west coast and central region, including in Tampa and St. Petersburg.
As of early Thursday, there were withmore than2.8 million homes and businesses without power.
In St. Petersburg, a water main break caused the city to shut down water access.
St. Pete Pier in St. Petersburg, Florida, as Hurricane Milton prepares to make landfall.Bryan R. Smith/AFP via Getty Images
A Tampa Bay Times reportershared a videoof the street outside the newspapers office, revealing vast destruction.
The total number of casualties from Hurricane Milton is yet to be confirmed.
Many of them were mobile homes in communities for senior citizens.
Earlier this week, local authorities issued mandatoryevacuation ordersacross 15 Florida counties, affecting around 7.2 million people.
If we have that predicted storm surge, it is not survivable.
Florida Gov.Ron DeSantisissued a warning Tuesday morning that time is running out to evacuate.
Cities including Ashville, North Carolina, were heavily damaged, and residents lost power and phone service.
More than 200 people are confirmed dead.
