AURORA, Colo. (AP) — The city of Aurora is roughly the size of pre-evacuation Tampa, Florida. With 400,000 people spread over 164 square miles, it has swank subdivisions, working-class neighborhoods and the high-end resort where Donald Trump will hold a rally Friday to highlight a city turned into “a war zone” by immigrants, in the words of his campaign.
The reality is much different from the one Trump has been portraying to his rally attendees. As with many other American cities, Aurora’s crime rate is actually declining.
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FILE - Juan Carlos Jimenez, center left, and Geraldine Massa speak during a rally by the East Colfax Community Collective to address chronic problems in the apartment buildings occupied by people displaced from their home countries in central and South America, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024, in Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
FILE - Juan Carlos Jimenez speaks during a rally by the East Colfax Community Collective to address chronic problems in the apartment buildings occupied by people displaced from their home countries in central and South America Sept. 3, 2024, in Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
A worker wheels a refrigerator into a used appliance store along East Colfax at Dallas Street, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024, in the east Denver suburb of Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
A lone pedestrian crosses East Colfax Avenue at the intersection with Dayton Street, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024, in the east Denver suburb of Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
FILE - Juan Carlos Jimenez, left, listens as Geraldine Massa speaks during a rally staged by the East Colfax Community Collective to address chronic problems in the apartment buildings occupied by people displaced from their home countries in central and South America, Sept. 3, 2024, in Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
FILE - A boy guides his bicycle past apartment buildings as a rally organized by the East Colfax Community Collective is held in the courtyard to address chronic problems in the apartments occupied by people displaced from their home countries in central and South America, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024, in Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
FILE - Moises Didenot speaks during a rally by the East Colfax Community Collective to address chronic problems in the apartment buildings occupied by people displaced from their home countries in central and South America, Sept. 3, 2024, in Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
FILE - A person holds up a placard during a rally by the East Colfax Community Collective to address chronic problems in the apartment buildings occupied by people displaced from their home countries in central and South America, Sept. 3, 2024, in Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
The matter that brought the Denver suburb to Trump’s attention occurred in August in a single block of the city, in an apartment complex housing Venezuelan migrants.
It was then that video surfaced of heavily armed men going door to door in the complex, where the New York-based owners claimed a Venezuelan gang was extorting rent from tenants. Someone was shot and killed outside the complex around the time the video was recorded, police said.
Now, two months later, authorities say they have identified six suspects and arrested one. Tenants of the building say police check in regularly and that the area is safe.
“They left, and it’s been nice and calm,” said Edward Ramirez, 38, of the gunmen as he climbed into his car this week. He was one of more than a dozen of tenants who said the threat has ebbed. “It’s quiet, we can work, it’s normal.”
Aurora’s crime rate has followed a downward trend seen across the country, a decline that has overlapped with the influx of Venezuelans fleeing their country who have funneled into Colorado and other cities nationwide.
Multiple studies show immigrants are less likely to commit crimes than native-born Americans. But Aurora also is an example of how Trump has been able to use real but isolated episodes of migrant violence to tar an entire population. He uses those examples to paint a picture of a country in chaos due to what he regularly calls an immigrant “invasion.”
“Do you see what they’re doing in Colorado? They’re taking over,” Trump, who often warns of “migrant crime,” said of Venezuelan gang members during a rally in Reading, Pennsylvania, on Wednesday. “They’re taking over real estate. They become real estate developers from Venezuela. They have equipment that our military doesn’t have.”
Trump’s sweeping claims about Aurora — his campaign’s announcement of the rally calls the city “a war zone,” linking to a story in the conservative New York Post that uses those words — have drawn sharp rebukes from local residents.
“Former President Trump’s visit to Aurora is an opportunity to show him and the nation that Aurora is a considerably safe city — not a city overrun by Venezuelan gangs,” Mayor Mike Coffman, who was a sometimes Trump critic when he served as a Republican congressman, said in a statement. “The reality is that the concerns about Venezuelan gang activity have been grossly exaggerated.”
Aurora did see a “slight” uptick in crime that coincided with the arrival of large numbers of Venezuelans in the city during September 2023, Police Chief Todd Chamberlain told a press conference last month. But that increase has since ebbed. According to Aurora police data, there were 12% fewer major crimes in the city — ranging from homicide to vehicle theft — last month than in September 2023.
Asked how it could justify its sweeping claims about safety as crime drops in Aurora, the Trump campaign responded with a statement from the Republican National Committee: “The violent gang invasion of Aurora, Colorado, is just one example of how every state is a border state,” spokeswoman Anna Kelly said. “Aurora apartment complexes are war zones, fentanyl is flooding communities, and migrant criminals are raping and murdering victims.”
The migrants began arriving in Denver at the end of 2022, which Colorado crime statistics show was the peak of a steady increase in crime in the state since the pandemic. In 2023, when Venezuelans became a staple on some Denver streetcorners selling flowers or offering quick car windshield washes, frustrating many Colorado voters, crime dropped statewide.
Aurora’s city council passed a resolution opposing resettlement of the migrants in their city, but nonprofits found willing landlords to take some, anyway. Others moved independently, drawn by cheaper rents.
Trump has claimed Venezuela and other countries are emptying their prisons, mental institutions and “insane asylums” to send dangerous people to the U.S. and has contended that Venezuela’s notoriously violent capital of Caracas is safer than many U.S. cities. The latter claim drew disbelief from Venezuelan migrants who say they feel safe in Aurora.
“It’s a thousand times better than Venezuela here,” said Dexe Medina, 44, as she left the Aurora apartment complex.
The neighborhood where many Venezuelans settled has long been one of Aurora’s rougher stretches, close to Colfax Boulevard, a sometimes run-down drag that bills itself as the nation’s longest street and runs from Aurora west through neighboring Denver and into the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.
Longtime residents say they’ve heard the occasional gunshot for years, but things seem relatively calm now.
“Honestly, this general area has improved,” said Diego Garcia, 18, a high school senior who lives a block away from the complex where the video was filmed. “It used to be a lot worse.”
Though residents feel safer, they acknowledge that the days in August when the armed men roamed the neighborhood were terrifying.
Dustin Zvonek, an Aurora City councilman, stressed that Aurora remains a safe city with falling crime, but warned against minimizing specific problems like those in the apartment complexes. He noted that residents of the buildings and its immediate neighbors haven’t been assuaged when told crime is dropping overall.
“It’s always not a big deal,” Zvonek said, “until it happens to you.”
FILE - Juan Carlos Jimenez, center left, and Geraldine Massa speak during a rally by the East Colfax Community Collective to address chronic problems in the apartment buildings occupied by people displaced from their home countries in central and South America, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024, in Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
FILE - Juan Carlos Jimenez speaks during a rally by the East Colfax Community Collective to address chronic problems in the apartment buildings occupied by people displaced from their home countries in central and South America Sept. 3, 2024, in Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
A worker wheels a refrigerator into a used appliance store along East Colfax at Dallas Street, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024, in the east Denver suburb of Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
A lone pedestrian crosses East Colfax Avenue at the intersection with Dayton Street, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024, in the east Denver suburb of Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
FILE - Juan Carlos Jimenez, left, listens as Geraldine Massa speaks during a rally staged by the East Colfax Community Collective to address chronic problems in the apartment buildings occupied by people displaced from their home countries in central and South America, Sept. 3, 2024, in Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
FILE - A boy guides his bicycle past apartment buildings as a rally organized by the East Colfax Community Collective is held in the courtyard to address chronic problems in the apartments occupied by people displaced from their home countries in central and South America, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024, in Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
FILE - Moises Didenot speaks during a rally by the East Colfax Community Collective to address chronic problems in the apartment buildings occupied by people displaced from their home countries in central and South America, Sept. 3, 2024, in Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
FILE - A person holds up a placard during a rally by the East Colfax Community Collective to address chronic problems in the apartment buildings occupied by people displaced from their home countries in central and South America, Sept. 3, 2024, in Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Rescue teams plucked Florida residents from the flotsam of Hurricane Milton on Thursday after the storm smashed through coastal communities where it tore homes into pieces, filled streets with mud and spawned a barrage of deadly tornadoes. At least six people were dead.
Arriving just two weeks after the misery wrought by Hurricane Helene, the system also knocked out power to more than 3 million customers, flooded barrier islands, tore the roof off a baseball stadium and toppled a construction crane.
Among the most dramatic rescues, Hillsborough County officers found a a 14-year-old boy floating on a piece of fence and pulled him onto a boat. A Coast Guard helicopter crew rescued a man who was left clinging to an ice chest in the Gulf of Mexico after his fishing boat was stranded in waters roiled by Hurricane Milton. The agency estimated the man had survived winds of 75 to 90 mph (121 to 145 kph) and waves up to 25 feet (7.6 meters) high during his night on the water.
“This man survived in a nightmare scenario for even the most experienced mariner,” Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Dana Grady said.
Despite the destruction, many people expressed relief that Milton wasn't worse. The hurricane spared Tampa a direct hit, and the lethal storm surge that scientists feared never materialized.
The storm tracked to the south in the final hours and made landfall late Wednesday as a Category 3 hurricane in Siesta Key, about 70 miles (112 kilometers) south of Tampa. Damage was widespread, and water levels may continue to rise for days, but Gov. Ron DeSantis said it was not “the worst-case scenario.”
“You face two hurricanes in a couple of weeks — not easy to go through — but I’ve seen a lot of resilience throughout this state,” the governor told a briefing in Sarasota. He said he was "very confident that this area is going to bounce back very, very quickly.”
Five people were killed in tornadoes in the Spanish Lakes Country Club near Fort Pierce, on Florida’s Atlantic Coast, where homes were destroyed, authorities said. Police also found a woman dead under a fallen tree branch.
Speaking at a White House briefing, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said there were reports of as many as 10 fatalities from tornadoes, but he cautioned that the number was tentative.
At least 340 individuals and 49 pets have been rescued in ongoing efforts, DeSantis said Thursday afternoon.
South of Tampa, Natasha Shannon and her husband, Terry, felt lucky to be alive after the hurricane peeled the tin roof off their cinder block home in Palmetto. They spent the night in a shelter with their three children and two grandchildren after she pushed them to leave.
“I said, ‘Baby, we got to go. Because we’re not going to survive this,’” she said.
They returned to find the roof torn into sheets across the street, shredded insulation hanging from exposed ceiling beams and their belongings soaked.
“It ain’t much but it was ours,” she said. “What little bit we did have is gone.”
The worst storm surge appeared to be in Sarasota County, where it was 8 to 10 feet (2.5 to 3 meters) — lower than in the worst place during Helene. The storm also dumped up to 18 inches (45 centimeters) of rain in some areas.
Officials in the hard-hit Florida counties of Hillsborough, Pinellas, Sarasota and Lee urged people to stay home, warning of downed power lines, trees in roads, blocked bridges and flooding.
Among the dozens of tornadoes was a twister that hit the tiny barrier island of Matlacha, just off Fort Myers. The fishing-and-tourism village also endured a surge, with many of the colorful buildings sustaining serious damage. Tom Reynolds, 90, spent the morning sweeping out 4 feet of mud and water and collecting chunks of aluminum siding torn off by a twister that also picked up a car and threw it across the road.
Elsewhere on the island, a house was blown into a street, temporarily blocking it. Some structures caught fire. Reynolds said he planned to repair the home he built three decades ago.
“What else am I going to do?” he said.
In contrast, city workers on Anna Maria Island were grateful not to be wading through floodwaters as they picked up debris Thursday morning, two weeks after Helene battered buildings and blew in piles of sand up to 6 feet (1.8 m) high. Those piles may have helped shield homes from further damage, said Jeremi Roberts of the State Emergency Response Team.
“I’m shocked it’s not more,” city worker Kati Sands said as she cleared the streets of siding and broken lights. “We lost so much with Helene, there wasn’t much left.”
Helene flooded streets and homes in western Florida and left at least 230 people dead across the South. In many places along the coast, municipalities raced to collect and dispose of debris before Milton’s winds and storm surge could toss it around and compound any damage.
Power was knocked out across much of the state. More than 3.4 million homes and businesses were without electricity, according to poweroutage.us, which tracks utility reports.
The fabric that serves as the roof of Tropicana Field — home of the Tampa Bay Rays baseball team in St. Petersburg — was ripped to shreds by fierce winds. Debris littered the field.
About 80,000 people spent the night in shelters, and thousands of others fled after authorities issued mandatory evacuation orders across 15 Florida counties with a total population of about 7.2 million people.
In Punta Gorda, a 10-foot surge from the Peace River swept into the historic district, damaging homes and depositing six boats along one riverside street. It was the third surge to hit the neighborhood in three months.
Josh Baldwin said he was leaning toward scrapping his 38-foot boat rather than pay $100,000 to fix it. He couldn’t get insurance because it was moored in Punta Gorda.
“They don’t like to pay out, and this place always gets ruined in hurricanes,” he said.
A half-block away, information technology workers Kent and Cathy Taylor and their son were using an SUV attached to a chain to pull waterlogged drywall out of the bottom floor of their three-story home, which they bought in July. The lower level is gutted, but the upper floors are still structurally sound.
“It will be beautiful again — it’s just a nick,” Cathy Taylor said.
By Thursday afternoon, Milton was headed into the Atlantic Ocean as a post-tropical cyclone with winds of 75 mph (120 kph) — just barely hurricane force.
Crossing the bridge from the mainland to Anna Maria Island early Thursday, Police Chief John Cosby breathed a sigh of relief. Nearly all residents had evacuated. There were no injuries or deaths, and the projected storm surge never happened. After fearing that his police department would be underwater, it remained dry.
“It's nice to have a place to come back to,” he said.
This version removes an erroneous reference to 150 tornadoes. Scientists say it's too early to know how many tornadoes developed.
Payne and Daley reported from Palmetto, Florida. Associated Press journalists Holly Ramer and Kathy McCormack in New Hampshire; Terry Spencer in Matlacha, Florida; Stephany Matat in Fort Pierce, Florida; Freida Frisaro in Fort Lauderdale; Michael Goldberg in Minneapolis; Joshua Boak in Washington; Jeff Martin in Atlanta; and Adam Geller in New York contributed to this report.
Neighborhoods destroyed by tornadoes are seen in this aerial photo in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Fort Pierce, Fla. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Neighborhoods destroyed by tornadoes are seen in this aerial photo in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Fort Pierce, Fla. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
The destroyed roof of the Tropicana Dome is seen in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Neighborhoods destroyed by tornadoes are seen in this aerial photo in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Fort Pierce, Fla. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
A St. Lucie County Sheriff's parking facility is shown after a tornado spawned ahead of Hurricane Milton destroyed it, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Fort Pierce, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, center, speaks during a news conference in front of a St. Lucie County Sheriff's parking facility that was damaged by a tornado spawned ahead of Hurricane Milton destroyed it, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Fort Pierce. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Rain flood waters recede around the bay-front home which Christian Burke's father had built to be hurricane proof and where Burke rode out Hurricane Milton along with his wife and aunt, in Gulfport, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. Even without the feared storm surge, Burke said the experience was intense and he won't feel the need to do it again. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Toppled palm trees lie along the road after the passage of Hurricane Milton in Bradenton Beach on Anna Maria Island, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
This drone image provided by Kairat Kassymbekov shows flooding from Hurricane Milton in Tampa, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (Kairat Kassymbekov via AP)
This drone image provided by Kairat Kassymbekov shows flooding from Hurricane Milton in Tampa, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (Kairat Kassymbekov via AP)
Two couples who evacuated get a ride back to their home through flooding after Hurricane Milton hit the region, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Palm Harbor, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Carlson)
An aerial drone view of Tropicana Field with the roof shredded after Hurricane Milton with downtown St. Petersburg in the background on Thursday morning, Oct. 10, 2024. (Dirk Shadd/Tampa Bay Times via AP)
Hangars at Albert Whitted Airport were damaged by winds from Hurricane Milton on Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Carlson)
Fred Hill gets a few drinks from his destroyed home after it was hit by a tornado and flooding caused by Hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Matlacha, Fla. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
A water rescue boat moves in flood waters at an apartment complex in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Clearwater, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Small boats rests on a pier after they were unmoored during Hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Fort Myers, Fla. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
People are rescued from an apartment complex in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Clearwater, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
A house lies toppled off its stilts after the passage of Hurricane Milton, in Bradenton Beach on Anna Maria Island, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Houses lie in ruins after sustaining tornado and flood damage from Hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Matlacha, Fla. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
People are rescued from an apartment complex in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Clearwater, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
People await being rescued from an apartment complex in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Clearwater, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
A water rescue team member walks through flood waters at an apartment complex in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Clearwater, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
A man and child leave a rescue boat after high flood waters entered their apartment in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Clearwater, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
A house lies toppled off its stilts after the passage of Hurricane Milton, in Bradenton Beach on Anna Maria Island, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Houses lie in ruins after sustaining tornado and flood damage from Hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Matlacha, Fla. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
The roof of the Tropicana Field is damaged the morning after Hurricane Milton hit the region, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Cattle graze near a greenhouse damaged by Hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Odessa, Fla. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Women look at an uprooted tree the morning after Hurricane Milton hit the region, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Odessa, Fla. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
A construction crane fell over into an office building that houses the Tampa Bay Times headquarters, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (Tampa Bay Times via AP)
An aerial view of Tropicana Field's shredded roof in downtown St. Petersburg, Fla., in the wake of Hurricane Milton early Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (Max Chesnes/Tampa Bay Times via AP)
An aerial view of Tropicana Field's shredded roof in downtown St. Petersburg, Fla., in the wake of Hurricane Milton early Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (Max Chesnes/Tampa Bay Times via AP)
A car sits in high water in front of a home in the aftermath of hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
A car sits in high water in front of a home in the aftermath of hurricane Milton, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Joe Lindquist, 32, of St. Petersburg, walks over bricks near a fallen crane along 1st Avenue South near the Tampa Bay Times offices in St. Petersburg, Florida, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, as Hurricane Milton's strong winds tore through the area. (Chris Urso/Tampa Bay Times via AP)
Drone images above Tropicana Field, home of the Tampa Bay Rays, show the shredded roof of the dome and the cots on the field, set up for first responders, among the debris, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024 in St. Petersburg, Fla. (Max Chesnes/Tampa Bay Times via AP)
Chris Nation, of Commerce, Ga., climbs a tree and gestures while hanging out with coworkers outside the hotel where they are riding out Hurricane Milton, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024, in Tampa, Fla. Nation, who works for a towing company, was deployed with colleagues to Florida to aid in the aftermath of the storm. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
A downed tree lies across a road after the passage of Hurricane Milton, in downtwon Tampa, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
A downed tree lies across a road after the passage of Hurricane Milton, in downtown Tampa, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
The Ponce De Leon Hotel sign fell to the ground after Hurricane Milton made landfall in Florida, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024 in St Petersburg. (Lauren Peace/Tampa Bay Times via AP)
Joe Lindquist, 32, of St. Petersburg, walks over bricks near a fallen crane along 1st Avenue South near the Tampa Bay Times offices in St. Petersburg, Florida, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, as Hurricane Milton's strong winds tore through the area. (Chris Urso/Tampa Bay Times via AP)
A group is silhouetted against a fallen crane along 1st Avenue South near the Tampa Bay Times offices in St. Petersburg, Florida, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, as Hurricane Milton's strong winds tore through the area. (Chris Urso/Tampa Bay Times via AP)
A crane is seen across 1st Avenue South near the Tampa Bay Times offices in St. Petersburg, Florida, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, as Hurricane Milton's strong winds tore through the area. (Chris Urso/Tampa Bay Times via AP)
A car drives past a pile of debris from Hurricane Helene flooding, along a street that had already begun flooding from rain ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Milton, in Gulfport, Fla., Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
A tow truck responds following a traffic accident between a car and a fire truck returning from a call, on near-deserted streets in downtown Tampa, Fla., during the approach of Hurricane Milton, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Mark Sapanara, of Pinellas, Fla., walks with his daughter's dog Frankie in the lobby of the hotel where he is taking shelter during Hurricane Milton, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
A few of the 283 registered animals, birds and reptiles line a hallway in the evacuation shelter at River Ridge Middle/High School in preparation for Hurricane Milton, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024, in New Port Richey, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Carlson)
The city of Sunny Isles Beach, Fla., is seen from Surfside, Fla., as the outer bands of Hurricane Milton kick up the sand, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Neighboring homes, a pile of debris and a garage damaged in Hurricane Helene, are seen from the third-floor of the home where Christian Burke, his mother and aunt will ride out Hurricane Milton, in Gulfport, Fla., Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. Burke, who said his engineer father built the concrete home to withstand a Category 5 hurricane, expects his raised ground floor to flood severely, but for the building to remain standing. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Melvin Lee Hicks, who is homeless, lies under a sheet donated by a nearby hotel, as he shelters alongside a parking garage in downtown Tampa, Fla., during the approach of Hurricane Milton, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Melvin Lee HIcks, who is homeless, wears a trash bag to protect against wind-driven rain, as he stands on a deserted street in downtown Tampa, Fla., during the approach of Hurricane Milton, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
A homeless person sleeps under a wheelchair alongside a parking garage in deserted downtown Tampa, Fla., during the approach of Hurricane Milton, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
A view of some of the 700 evacuees in the gymnasium in shelter at River Ridge Middle/High School in preparation for Hurricane Milton on Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024, in New Port Richey, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Carlson)
Christian Burke stands on the third floor of his home, where he, his mother, and his aunt plan to ride out Hurricane Milton with views through hurricane proof glass over Tampa Bay, in Gulfport, Fla., Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. Burke, who said his engineer father built the concrete home to withstand a Category 5 hurricane, expects his home to turn into an island, with up to 8 feet of water filling the raised first floor. Behind Burke, a window reflects a boat deposited by Hurricane Helene in the bay front park across the street. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
A man walking his dogs takes a picture from the sheltered entryway of the Hyatt Place Downtown Tampa hotel, as strong gusts of wind from Hurricane Milton blow sheets of rain along the street in Tampa, Fla., Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (AP Photo Rebecca Blackwell)
Rain begins to fall ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Milton in Tampa, Fla., Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
This GOES-16 GeoColor satellite image taken at 11:46 a.m. EDT and provided by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) shows Hurricane Milton in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (NOAA via AP)
Chris Nation, of Commerce, Ga., skids on puddles in the parking lot of the hotel where he's riding out Hurricane Milton, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024, in Tampa, Fla. Nation, who works for a towing company, was deployed to Florida to aid in the aftermath of the storm. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
A boat damaged in Hurricane Helene rests against a bridge ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Milton, in South Pasadena, Fla., Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
A Lee County Sheriff's officer patrols the streets of Cape Coral, Fla., as heavy rain falls ahead of Hurricane Milton, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
The Segundo family, who evacuated from nearby Davis Island, plays a board game with their dog Cassie looking on, as Hurricane Milton makes landfall on Florida's Gulf Coast, at Hyatt Place Tampa Downtown hotel in Tampa, Fla., Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Ron Rook, who said he was looking for people in need of help or debris to clear, walks through windy and rainy conditions on a deserted street in downtown Tampa, Fla., during the approach of Hurricane Milton, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Wind-driven rain soaks a street in downtown Tampa, Fla., during the passage of Hurricane Milton, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Max Watts, of Buford, Ga., walks in the parking lot to check on a trailer parked outside the hotel where he is riding out Hurricane Milton with coworkers, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024, in Tampa, Fla. Watts, who works for a towing company, was deployed with colleagues to Florida to aid in the aftermath of the storm. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
The roof of Tropicana Field, the home of the Tampa Bay Rays, appeared to be badly damaged as Hurricane Milton passes Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (Chris Urso/Tampa Bay Times via AP)
Christian Burke stands at the door of his home, where he, his mother, and his aunt plan to ride out Hurricane Milton on the third floor overlooking overlooking Tampa Bay, in Gulfport, Fla., Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. Burke, who said his engineer father built the concrete home to withstand a Category 5 hurricane, expects his raised ground floor to get up to 8 feet of water in Milton. A boat deposited by Hurricane Helene sits lodged in the bay front park outside his front door. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
More than 2 million without power as Hurricane Milton slams Florida, causes deaths and flooding
More than 2 million without power as Hurricane Milton slams Florida, causes deaths and flooding
