PORT PIERCE, OCT 11 – At least 11 people died when Hurricane Milton spawned tornadoes across Florida, officials said yesterday as the state grappled with flooding, power outages and other problems from the milder-than-expected storm. will be a disaster.
The storm hit the state late Wednesday before moving into the Atlantic Ocean, leaving roads blocked by trees and downed power lines. It damaged the roof of a baseball stadium. About three million homes and businesses were without power.
However, so far it appears that the tornado, rather than the flooding, is responsible for the deaths from the storm.
“It’s pretty scary,” said Susan Stepp, a 70-year-old resident of Fort Pierce, a town on Florida’s east coast where four people in an elderly community were killed after the tornado brought by Milton tore through the town on Wednesday.
“They found several people lying dead outside, on a tree,” he told AFP.
“I hope they will be moved.”
The deaths included five people in St. Lucie County, three in Volusia County, two in the city of St. Petersburg and one in the city of Tampa, local authorities said.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told reporters that the death was caused by the tornado.
In Tampa, police found a woman in her early 70s trapped under a large tree branch and pronounced her dead, saying her death was believed to be related to recovery efforts after Hurricane Milton. – AFP
