Florida returning to something like normal after Hurricane Milton

ELLENTON, Fla. (AP) — Florida counties hard hit by Hurricane Milton are returning to a semblance of normalcy, with power restored to most areas on Monday, gas stations reopening and students preparing to return to school.

Still, some neighborhoods remained without power, with many severely damaged homes and businesses, their streets flooded and filled with debris.

But on the whole, things were looking up.

Florida power companies had restored electricity to about 93% of the 3.4 million homes and businesses that lost service after Milton made landfall late Wednesday as a Category 3 hurricane south of Tampa, smacking the region with 120 mph (205 kph) winds and a storm surge of up to 10 feet (3 meters).

At least 11 people died less than two weeks after Hurricane Helene inflicted major damage in Florida and other Southeastern states. The death toll from Helene is more than 240.

The three major power companies in the area hit by Milton deployed thousands of workers to quickly repair lines, poles and other infrastructure.

“I know those guys got in and started working as soon as it was possible,” Gov. Ron DeSantis told a Monday news conference at SeaPort Manatee, just south of Tampa Bay. He said the recovery has been “very rapid and we appreciate what they’ve been able to do.”

Florida Power & Light, Duke Energy and TECO Energy also credited efforts over the last decade to put more power lines underground, install stronger utility poles and adopt technology that enables electricity to be rerouted around damaged equipment.

Areas that remain flooded will be the last to get power, and homes with damaged electrical systems won’t be able to receive it, the companies said.

“Electricity and water don’t mix, so we cannot reenergize until the water has receded to ensure the safety of those customers,” Duke spokesperson Ana Gibbs said.

Gerome Ozias was startled Sunday night when power came back after four days to his home in Palmetto, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) south of Tampa. He had been prepared to wait much longer. As he sat on his shaded front porch Monday with his daughter and another relative, air conditioning units hummed from several windows.

“I’m surprised, but I’m happy, too.” said Ozias, who emigrated from Haiti nearly three decades ago. With power for his refrigerator, he replaced the food that had spoiled.

Lines are mostly gone at gas stations. DeSantis said about 12 million gallons (45 million liters) of fuel was brought in over the four days since the storm. That helped replenish stations that ran out of gas before Milton arrived. The state has also opened a dozen sites in the Tampa Bay area where it is giving away about 2 million gallons of fuel.

According to the fuel tracking website and app GasBuddy, about half of the Tampa Bay area's gas stations had fuel on Monday afternoon. On Friday, less than a quarter did.

Indicative of the improved conditions was a line at a Palmetto car wash, where David Washington used a towel to dry and buff his now-sparkling blue Ford F-150. The pickup had been spattered with mud from driving through soggy areas as Washington checked on relatives after the two storms.

“You clean your car and get inside, it just makes you feel so much better,” said Washington, a lifelong Floridian.

Most school districts in the hardest-hit areas plan to reopen campuses Wednesday, though Manatee County plans to reopen its schools on Tuesday. In Hillsborough County, which contains Tampa, schools held cleanup events on Monday.

“We had school staff, families and other volunteers out cleaning up debris on the campus. It was an amazing show of community,” district spokesperson Tanya Arja said. About a third of the district’s 304 schools remain without power and a dozen still have standing water, she said.

DeSantis has cautioned that debris removal from Helene and Milton could take up to a year, even as Florida shifts nearly 3,000 workers to the cleanup. The federal government has approved 100% federal reimbursement for those efforts for 90 days.

Including damage done by Helene in other states, Moody’s estimates that combined privately insured losses for the two storms range between $35 billion and $55 billion. That’s only insured loss, and doesn’t include the federal flood insurance program.

Unlike Ozias’ neighborhood, Chuck Porter’s neighborhood in nearby Ellenton remained without power Monday afternoon.

A snapped power pole was still lying across the yard of a nearby home. A large, uprooted tree still pinned down power lines near the neighborhood entrance. Utility crew trucks passed without stopping, since they couldn’t do any repair work yet.

Still, Porter, a retiree who has lived in the community nearly 70 years, wasn’t complaining. Porter and his wife, Nancy, were staying with their daughter nearby. His power company says his service should be restored by Wednesday night, but even a little delay won’t bother him.

“By the end of the week, we’ll be fine,” Porter said.

On Monday, the Porters were still cleaning out their home, which flooded knee-deep and got swamped with muck when Helene struck more than two weeks ago.

It was Milton’s winds that knocked out power lines to the neighborhood and ripped shingles from Porter’s roof. But the wind damage to his home was minimal. The Key West-style bar he built himself in the backyard survived intact, with its neon signs and displays of hanging baseball bats and guitar-shaped bottle openers undisturbed.

Still, the water damage inside was extensive. He was replacing his air-conditioner, refrigerator and other appliances.

“Salt water just destroys everything,” Porter said. “Any light sockets that got wet, they’ll have to rip them out.”

And many of his neighbors had it worse he said: Homes one street closer to the river flooded with sewage.

“It’s going to be like this for six months or more” before all the storm damage gets repaired, he said. “Insurance pays for it. It’s just time-consuming.”

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Anderson reported from St. Petersburg. AP writers Terry Spencer in Fort Lauderdale and Brendan Farrington in Tallahassee contributed to this report.

Pike Corporation linemen, of North Carolina, repair power lines damaged by Hurricane Milton Monday, Oct. 14, 2024, in Lithia, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Pike Corporation linemen, of North Carolina, repair power lines damaged by Hurricane Milton Monday, Oct. 14, 2024, in Lithia, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Pike Corporation linemen, of North Carolina, repair power lines damaged by Hurricane Milton Monday, Oct. 14, 2024, in Lithia, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Property owners who preferred not to be named assess damage to their home and business, which bears orange notices calling for demolition, after the passage of Hurricane Milton, on Manasota Key in Englewood, Fla., Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Neighbors help take down a tree felled by winds from Hurricane Milton, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Pike Corporation linemen, from North Carolina, work on power lines damaged by Hurricane Milton Monday, Oct. 14, 2024, in Lithia, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Pike Corporation linemen, of North Carolina, repair electricity damaged by Hurricane Milton Monday, Oct. 14, 2024, in Lithia, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

A large fallen tree pins down power lines in Ellenton, Fla., on Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Russ Bynum)

Pike Corporation linemen, of North Carolina, repair power lines damaged by Hurricane Milton Monday, Oct. 14, 2024, in Lithia, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Pike Corporation linemen from North Caolina, repair power pole damaged by Hurricane Milton Monday, Oct. 14, 2024, in Lithia, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

As the college football season reaches its midway point, plenty of playoff contenders suddenly find themselves dealing with season-ending injuries to notable players.

Notre Dame cornerback Benjamin Morrison, Tennessee linebacker Keenan Pili and Texas defensive back Derrick Williams are out for the rest of the season, their coaches announced Monday. Ohio State left tackle Josh Simmons also has an injury that puts his availability for the rest of the season in doubt.

All went down as part of a brutal weekend that included Florida quarterback Graham Mertz and Colorado State wide receiver Tory Horton suffering season-ending injuries and Utah quarterback Cam Rising hurting his lower leg severely enough to keep him for the rest of the season.

Mertz and Pili both got injured in No. 11 Tennessee’s 23-17 overtime victory over Florida. Pili’s ACL injury leaves the Volunteers without one of their team captains as they prepare to host No. 7 Alabama on Saturday.

Pili’s college career is over. He is 26 and transferred to Tennessee from BYU. He suffered a season-ending triceps injury to start the 2023 season and has used not one but two medical redshirts. Injuries limited him to just seven games in two seasons with the Vols.

“There’s nobody that represents Tennessee better than him," coach Josh Heupel said Monday. “He’s a great leader and will continue to be that inside of our building. Just heartbroken for him and his family. A guy that does absolutely everything right. Special player, but special person. He’s got a great future.”

Heupel said either Arion Carter or Jeremiah Telander will take over for Pili in wearing the in-helmet communication device on defense.

Morrison, who has a hip injury, arguably was the top player to go down for the season over the weekend. The second-team preseason Associated Press All-America selection had nine career interceptions and was regarded as a possible first-round draft pick.

“Obviously it’s a blow to our team,” Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman said. “You lose a captain, a great football player. You feel terrible for the kid because he gives football, he gives preparation everything he has. It’s just tough. But he’s a tough kid. He’s a tough individual. He’s been through this before, he’ll have surgery and get back to work to become the best version of Benjamin.”

Morrison is the latest notable Notre Dame defensive player to be lost for the season. No. 12 Notre Dame is ranked eighth in points allowed per game (11.7), 11th in yards allowed per game (270) and fourth in yards allowed per play (4.25), but the Fighting Irish already lost defensive linemen Jordan Botelho and Boubacar Traore to season-ending injuries.

The Irish now lose Morrison just three weeks after cornerback Jaden Mickey announced four games into the season that he was redshirting to preserve a year of eligibility as he prepares to transfer.

Morrison’s injury likely moves freshman cornerback Leonard Moore into a starting role alongside Christian Gray as Notre Dame prepares to face Georgia Tech in Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Texas coach Steve Sarkisian announced Monday that Williams also would miss the rest of the season. Texas officials haven’t specified the nature of Williams’ injury.

Williams had picked off a pass in a victory at No. 24 Michigan last month, and he forced and recovered a fumble in the top-ranked Longhorns’ 34-3 rout of Oklahoma on Saturday. His injury comes as Texas gets ready to host No. 5 Georgia.

Fans of No. 4 Ohio State are still awaiting word on the severity of the injury to Simmons, who was carted off the field during the Buckeyes’ 32-31 loss at No. 2 Oregon. Coach Ryan Day sounded pessimistic in his postgame news conference Saturday.

“I’ll have to get the update on Simmons, but it doesn’t look great in terms of him being able to come back this season,” Day said. “That’s a big hit for us.”

The notable injuries weren’t restricted to top teams.

Mertz tore the ACL in his left knee after throwing a touchdown pass in Florida’s loss to Tennessee. Mertz, a Wisconsin transfer, has suffered a season-ending injury each of his two years at Florida. He broke his collarbone in a game against Missouri last November.

His latest injury makes freshman DJ Lagway the Gators’ starting quarterback.

Utah coach Kyle Whittingham announced Monday that Rising is out for the rest of the season after suffering a lower leg injury in a 27-19 loss to Arizona State on Friday that knocked the Utes out of the AP Top 25.

Rising, who is in his seventh season, already missed three games this season because of an injury to his throwing hand. He sat out the entire 2023 season with a knee injury.

Freshman Isaac Wilson, the younger brother of Denver Broncos quarterback Zach Wilson, will take Rising’s place. Utah went 2-1 in the three games Wilson started when Rising was out with the hand injury.

Colorado State coach Jay Norvell announced on social media that Horton would miss the rest of the season after getting hurt in a 31-24 victory over San Jose State. Norvell didn't specify the nature of Horton's injury.

Horton had 26 catches for 353 yards and one touchdown this season after recording back-to-back seasons with at least 1,100 yards receiving in 2022 and 2023. Horton, who played at Nevada from 2020-21 before transferring to Colorado State, was on the verge of setting the Mountain West Conference record for career receiving yardage.

Horton has 265 career catches for 3,615 yards. The MWC career record is owned by Rashard Higgins, who had 3,649 yards receiving for Colorado State from 2013-15.

AP Sports Writers Mark Long and Teresa M. Walker and AP freelance writer John Coon contributed to this report.

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Stanford running back Chris Davis Jr., left, reaches for extra yards as Notre Dame defensive back Benjamin Morrison, right, tackles him during an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 12, 2024, in South Bend, Ind. (AP Photo/Michael Caterina)