Hurricane Milton’s brutalizing march across Florida and the serious recovery challenges ahead started coming into sharper focus throughout Thursday as residents and officials alike took stock of what hit them and what it will take to rebuild.
Although Milton had departed the state and was downgraded over the Atlantic Ocean to a post-tropical cyclone with diminished wind speeds of about 75 mph, it left behind more than 3.2 million Florida residents without power as of 2 p.m. — along with a daunting to-do list.
“I know recovery and rebuilding projects can take a long and difficult time, but long after the press and cameras move on, I promise you … we’ll do everything in our power to put the pieces back together and get all that you need,” President Joe Biden said at an afternoon briefing.
Nor are the ongoing risks done with, as the National Hurricane Center reported Thursday afternoon that “the risk of considerable urban flooding will linger” and that “moderate to major river flooding is ongoing and forecast throughout central Florida.”
