Hurricane Milton Leaves Millions in Florida Without Power

Hurricane Milton, which made landfall in Siesta Key, Sarasota County, on Wednesday evening as a Category 3 storm, has left a significant portion of Florida grappling with widespread power outages. As of Friday morning, over 2.5 million customers across the state were without electricity.

In the Tampa Bay area, the power outage situation remains critical. According to the latest updates, Duke Energy reported significant outages in several counties, including Pinellas County with 406,136 customers affected, Pasco County with 68,670, and Polk County with 55,653. Florida Power & Light also reported substantial outages, particularly in Manatee County with 128,780 customers and Sarasota County with 105,340.

Tampa Electric, another major power provider, reported that 484,390 of its customers were experiencing power outages. Additionally, Lakeland Electric and Peace River Electric also had thousands of customers without power.

The restoration efforts are underway, with crews from across the country working to repair the damaged infrastructure. Duke Energy Florida has restored nearly 350,000 outages since the storm’s landfall and has 16,000 resources dedicated to the power restoration efforts. The company is staging crews in various base camps across the hardest-hit areas to expedite the process.

Besides power outages, residents are also facing challenges such as fuel shortages and extensive property damage. Many fuel stations remain closed, and the lack of gasoline is complicating the recovery process. The storm also caused significant damage to homes, infrastructure, and even major landmarks like the Tampa Bay Rays’ baseball stadium.