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    • 2.2 million without power in Milton
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    2.2 million without power in Milton

    Kathleen William Posted on

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    Millions of Floridians remained without power Friday morning after Hurricane Milton left the state and swept into the Atlantic Ocean.

    The devastating storm that hit Florida at a magnitude of 3 claimed at least 14 lives after cutting a path of destruction across the state's west coast late Wednesday. As a result, neighborhoods were flooded, homes were destroyed, the roof of Tropicana Field was torn off and a crane crashed into an office building.

    Despite the destruction, Gov. Ron DeSantis determined that Milton was not as severe as he and other officials had feared.

    “The storm was significant, but fortunately this was not the worst-case scenario,” DeSantis said at a briefing Thursday. He pointed to the storm's weakening before landfall and said the storm surge “was not as significant overall as what was observed with Hurricane Helene, as originally reported.”

    DeSantis said Tampa experienced a reverse storm surge that pushed water away from the coast rather than overwhelming the city.

    Power outages became more frequent Thursday as the storm began off the state's east coast.

    While the state's west coast bore the brunt of Hurricane Milton, Milton's impacts extended well beyond the mainland. Others inland were still dealing with power outages and some blocked roads.

    Keeping up with Hurricane Milton? Sign up for USA TODAY's Climate Point newsletter for exclusive weather analysis.

    Hurricane Milton: Milton caused serious damage. But some of Florida's famous beaches may have gotten a pass.

    Florida power outage map

    As of Friday morning, 2.2 million Floridians were still without power, according to power outage tracker USA TODAY.

    The west central coast remains the hardest hit: 483,225 residents in Hillsborough County and another 460,544 in Pinellas County are still in the dark. There were 113,745 power outages reported in Pasco County.

    Further south, 152,471 residents in Sarasota County and 129,181 in Manatee County were without power Friday morning. On the state's east coast, 139,835 homes and businesses were without power in Volusia County.

    In Polk County, south of Orlando, 136,292 Floridians were without power.

    Recovery efforts after outages

    Once power outages occur, restoration efforts will be put in place wherever and whenever it is safe to do so.

    Florida Power and Light Company said in its latest news release that it restored power to more than 730,000 customers as of Thursday afternoon. The company deployed a force of about 17,000 people to assess the damage, coordinate with local emergency responders and ultimately restore power.

    “While storm surges, flooding, downed trees and tornadoes pose recovery challenges, damage assessment teams across the state are helping FPL send the right personnel and equipment to the right locations to restore power safely and as quickly as possible.” FPL said in a statement.

    Priority will be given to restoring power to restore power to the greatest number of customers as quickly as possible. According to FPL, the following priorities are set:

    • Power plants and damaged lines and substations
    • Critical facilities such as hospitals, police and fire stations, communications facilities, water treatment plants and transportation providers
    • Main roads with supermarkets, pharmacies, gas stations and other needed municipal services.
    • Smaller groups and local areas.

    Contributors: John Bacon, Trevor Hughes, Christopher Cann, Chris Kenning, Jorge L. Ortiz, Thao Nguyen, Jeanine Santucci, N'dea Yancey-Bragg, Julia Gomez, USA TODAY

    Eric Lagatta covers breaking and breaking news for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected]

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    Kathleen William
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