Hurricane Milton slams into Florida's Gulf Coast as a Category 3 storm

More than 20 million people in Florida and Georgia are under hurricane or tropical storm warnings, with much of north central Florida under tornado and flood warnings. The storm surge from Milton is expected to engulf the same area that was ravaged by Hurricane Helene just two weeks ago, which killed more than 230 people across the southeast United States.

While it is too early to accumulate casualty data, emergency officials have already confirmed several fatalities just moments after Milton made landfall.

"We have lost some life," St. Lucie County Sheriff Keith Pearson told the WPBF television station.

Pearson did not reveal how many people died but said that search and rescue teams have already been called into duty.

Nearly 1.7 million people are without electricity, according to PowerOutage.us, and that number is expected to increase dramatically as Milton carves its destructive path across the state, downing power lines.

Residents living along Florida's Gulf Coast were told to evacuate as the storm approached, and for those who did not leave, they were urged to shelter in place.

"With night falling and power outages climbing, high winds are only getting worse across western FL," the National Weather Service (NWS) posted on X.

"While sheltering from Milton, stay in interior rooms away from places with overhanging trees or branches," the NWS continued, as people have died from falling trees and branches during previous hurricanes.

Emergency officials on Florida's east coast are responding to tornadoes which have reportedly touched down in several Atlantic Coast communities. Nearly 12 million residents are under tornado warnings.

President Joe Biden referred to Hurricane Milton as "the storm of the century" at a White House emergency briefing and told residents to take all necessary safety precautions.

"It’s a matter, literally, of life and death," said Biden.

In addition to the damaging winds and tornadoes, Milton is expected to cause catastrophic flooding across much of the state. The National Weather Service is expecting rainfall totals between 12 to 18 inches (30 to 45 centimeters) in some areas.

The National Hurricane Center is expecting widespread damage from Milton, forecasting tropical-storm-force winds extending out 255 miles (410 kilometers) from the center of the storm.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that hundreds of search and rescue personnel and 180 high-water vehicles are on alert to begin emergency operations. More than 6,000 state National Guard members and 3,000 more from other states are also on standby, in addition to 50,000 linemen who will work on restoring electricity after the storm.