♪ no matter what you say turn it around you're gonna make it make it all right ♪ [ cheers and applause ] >> tonight, tracking milton the hurricane bearing down on the west coast of florida, bringing what many predicted will be an historic storm surge and whipping up tornadoes. all over the state, now turning deadly. >> we have lost some life. >> shocking. even experienced hurricane hunters. >> this is the craziest storm that i've ever flown inside of. hands down multiple missions in a row with the worst turbulence i've ever seen. >> plus, state of emergency. many riding it out, hunkering

down after the potentially life or death choice. >> we had trouble finding a hotel and didn't want to get stranded on the highway, running out of gas or face possibly unsurvivable flooding. >> once you've seen the worst, you have to prepare for the worst. >> where is milton heading next? our team on the ground, standing by with the latest. this special edition of nightline tracking. edition of nightline tracking. milton will be right back hey..? this mucus won't move out. you're gonna love this property. the guy's congestion remedy? harmless. try this. mucinex 12 hour treats the mucus that causes chest congestion for all-day relief. don't leave! it's fine! ugh! i was worried about this side of town! mucinex in, mucus out! don't mask symptoms, treat the cause.

>> good evening. thank you for joining us as we come on the air in the west coast hurricane milton slamming into the gulf coast of florida earlier tonight, making landfall near sarasota as a category three storm with 120 mile per hour winds. those monster gusts sending walls of water. the wind even ripping off the roof of tropicana field, which had been set up as a shelter. dozens of tornadoes popping up across florida in saint lucie county. multiple fatalities. firefighters rescuing residents from vehicles and structures with some trapped or unable to escape from overturned vehicles. our team was on the ground across the state. we turn first to whit johnson in tampa, where it has been a difficult and dangerous night. whit. >> reporter byron we're in downtown tampa right now. this

is after milton has made landfall and we're starting to get these extreme hurricane force wind gusts coming through. we're in a fortified parking garage right now, but i want to take you to the railing so you can take a look below at the streets. you can see the trees blowing. there's a sign across the street. some of the palm fronds. we've actually seen some signs ripped off and some debris blowing down the street here. that's the thing with hurricane milton that they were worried about. it's the combination of these hurricane force wind gusts. also the rain, up to 12in of rain potentially expected in this area. and the potentially record breaking storm surge of up to nine feet. we were here just two weeks ago, and it was hurricane helene with that storm. most of the concern was the flooding and it did pretty significant damage. we actually went back to many of the same neighborhoods that were flooded from hurricane helene. and we talked to people who hunkered

down in that storm. this time around, they heeded the warnings. most of the people we spoke with said they were getting out and evacuating. 13,000 people in the tampa area were staying in evacuation shelters. we spoke to a number of families who lived here their whole lives and said they'd never seen anything like this. the one two punch from hurricane helene and milton. we also talked to the fire chief, who told us that when the storm is hitting, which is happening right now, they cannot send emergency crews to respond to 911 calls. so for those who did not evacuate, they're essentially on their own right now. those search and rescue crews will get out and high water vehicles and boats when the winds eventually subside. >> byron whit johnson in tampa, thank you so much. stay safe, my friend. we turn now to abc chief meteorologist ginger zee, joining us from fort myers. ginger, what can you tell us? so byron, let me set the scene for you. >> as we've seen the onshore

flow now, the surge behind us has had debris in it. you see that shed? the doorknob is almost reached with the water. so if it gets higher, that can be ripped apart. i actually covered ian and they had a little shed there that they lost in ian. and so we're kind of repeating that part. but we're looking for big time surge to still be pushing up as the storm pulls across the state. because it's happening fast, it's racing. and even by early tomorrow morning, like 5 a.m, daytona beach to new smyrna could be feeling some of those hurricane force gusts. definitely tropical storm force. and i think we'll see a lot of power outages overnight. we'll get rid of milton by tomorrow afternoon, but not before it leaves behind up to 18in of rain. and that's for places like tampa bay that are on track for their wettest season on record. so just unbelievable to watch that water push in the gulf of mexico has now reached the pool at our hotel byron. >> our thanks to ginger, we turn now to eva pilgrim on the ground in orlando. eva. >> byron. we're here in orlando

and we are starting to see the more powerful winds and downpour from hurricane milton. when you look at the track of where this hurricane is headed, it's going to be just south of orlando, which puts us on the dirty side of the storm, meaning we are going to be getting all of that rain. it is going to be very wet here as someone said, it's like a fire hose turned on in the area, and this area was getting prepared for that. they drained some of the lakes to make space for the water. they've also encouraged people, if they're in low lying areas to park their cars in parking garages. the city opening up those parking garages, allowing people to park there for free. the worst of this weather is going to be over. orlando. as we wake up in the morning, we will be keeping an eye on that. byron. >> eva thank you. victor oquendo joins us from sarasota on the phone just minutes from where milton first made landfall. victor. >> byron we are on the backside of the hurricane and it is

incredibly powerful. siesta key where it made landfall. it's just seven miles from us. so just moments after the eye passed over us, conditions rapidly deteriorated here. our team had to get indoors and we felt it start with the wind and then over at sarasota bradenton international airport. they recorded a gust of wind at 102mph. and that's just across the street from where we're staying tonight. we are without power. i'm currently wearing a headlamp just to see inside my hotel room. storm surge. that's been a major concern all along, but milton also spawning dozens of tornadoes. more are still possible as we all brace for a long night ahead tonight. monster hurricane milton pounding the state of florida. the category three hurricane making landfall on the state's west coast. catastrophic winds reaching as high as 120mph. wind and rain pummeling the sunshine

state. the storm spawning over 30 tornadoes ripping through neighborhoods, tearing the roofs off people's homes. >> and we all started going for the hallway. didn't even make it there in time, and we have lost some life. >> search and rescue teams are on their way. our deputies are out here. the fire district is out here. >> we're going through the rubble just north of palm beach on the east coast. officials confirming multiple fatalities from tornadoes. video from nasa capturing the magnitude of the storm. the intense storm surge already flooding city streets. tampa's mayor warning locals of the dangers on cnn. >> i can say without any dramatization whatsoever, if you choose to stay in one of those evacuation areas, you're going to die. >> the storm is here. it is really nuts out here right now. the wind is whipping. >> the roof is literally ripping off residents who stayed back. >> now battling what some call

unsurvivable elements. over 2 million customers already without power, according to officials. milton is expected to cause severe damage across florida, from tampa to orlando to jacksonville. it's not just about where it makes landfall. >> it's going to barrel across the state of florida. >> a local emergency currently exists. >> as milton was barreling towards the coast, officials begged residents to evacuate the sarasota county sheriff's office is calling for evacuation. while many floridians fled the path of the storm in a mass exodus, for some time ran out with nearly 2000 gas stations out of fuel. locals like jenny karate said staying in the tampa area was her family's best option. >> we had trouble finding a hotel and didn't want to get stranded on the highway, running out of gas. >> calvin bryant has lived in sarasota since 1957. he chose not to evacuate. so when your family, your kids and

grandchildren told you to please leave, what was your response? >> i'm not going nowhere. >> as the storm surge got closer to the coast, dangerous tornadoes spotted across southern florida, terrifying home surveillance video capturing the moment this tornado roared through fort myers. another tornado spotted on a traffic camera crossing i-75 west of fort lauderdale, far from where milton is taking direct aim. >> i watched it grow from tropical storm to a cat five monster within two missions, which is the fastest i've ever seen anything rapidly intensify. >> earlier today, hurricane hunters from noaa headed into the eye of the storm to evaluate its strength and size. >> this is the craziest storm that i've ever flown inside of, hands down multiple missions in a row with the worst turbulence i've ever seen. >> once you've seen the worst, you have to prepare for the worst. >> rebecca binkowski is no stranger to hurricane season. >> the lot a lot, a lot of stuff to throw away in 2022. >> hurricane ian destroyed the

island of sanibel, 20 miles off the coast of fort myers. the location of her beloved bookstore. after the devastation, she had to rebuild an entirely new location. but with her new bookstore in the path of hurricane milton, she decided to evacuate, this time to saint augustine. >> i may not be able to come back to my store for weeks months who knows? so i took all of the merchandise out of my store. >> milton coming on the heels of hurricane helene, the destruction from that category four. absolutely devastating. with more than 230 people killed, according to officials, helene is now the deadliest mainland hurricane since katrina. helene ravaged the southeastern states, particularly north carolina. deadly mudslides water plants severely damaged hundreds of thousands left without power. roads completely blocked bridges

collapsed. one family in the town of fairview losing 11 people. >> my mother and father, my aunt and uncle, my great aunt and uncle. i've lost cousins, second cousins in florida. >> the aftermath of that storm leaving debris piled high, that wreckage now possibly becoming flying projectiles with milton, strong winds. while disinformation about the federal government's help with the storm recovery has run rampant, efforts are already underway over the last few weeks, there's been reckless and irresponsible and relentless promotion of disinformation and outright lies about what's going on. >> it's undermining confidence in the people in florida, an incredible rescue and recovery work that has been undertaken. >> fema is on the ground in florida, working with local authorities, urging americans to apply for assistance. the biggest effect i would say, is people that have been impacted are afraid to apply for our assistance, assistance that then

they can get a hotel room, they can get reimbursement for some of the costs or damages to their home. but as hurricane milton continues to pass through the state of florida, the results of its devastation is still unknow. >> our thanks to victor when we come back, we hear from some of the many floridians who made the life risking choice to hunker down and stay put against the down and stay put against the many dire warnings. grab bounty. (♪) bounty is made to be stronger... ...and more absorbent. so, while ordinary brands can't hold up, one sheet of bounty keeps working, even when wet. (♪) now that's the sound of value. bounty. the quicker picker upper. probably seen all these

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>> welcome back. officials have

been issuing stern warnings to residents to evacuate and seek safety elsewhere. some residents were willing but unable as roads became jammed full of others fleeing. and many gas stations ran out of fuel. joining us is sarah lutzker, who is riding out the storm in her saint petersburg apartment with her 15 month old daughter. her husband and two cats. sarah, thank you so much for joining us. how are you guys doing? >> yeah, we're doing good. i think as of right now, we think we made the right decision by staying, even though we didn't have much of a choice. we're just we're doing the best we can. >> now, you guys are on a high floor in your apartment building, so you should be okay if there's storm surge there. what's it been like? what have you seen and heard this evening? >> we are in a higher floor, which i'm very grateful for. we have a balcony which we went out on a couple times, but now at this point, we're trying to stay off of it because it's getting crazy out there. we've seen a bunch of transformers blow, so you see like big blue green

lights and you hear big booms. sometimes you don't really know which way it's coming. it's definitely starting to get crazy out there. i'm surprised i still have power. >> do you have flashlights? and those kinds of things in case you do lose power? >> we do. we have a flashlight and a couple of candles. by the time we tried to go to the store and get as much supplies as we wanted, most of everything was sold out. so what we have will make us through. is it as much as i would have liked to have? no, but it will. it will keep us where we need to be. >> i can sense there's some anxiety for you now. are you okay? yeah. >> i mean, like, i want to cry, but i'm trying to stay positive. i feel like i'm grateful that i'm. i'm not near the storm surge. you know, i'm away from that part. and i know so many people are going to lose everything. and my heart breaks for them, especially seeing the damage from helene. i'm anxious for myself and losing electricity, but i'm more anxious to just, like, wake up tomorrow and see the aftermath.

>> many people share that that same sentiment. sarah lutzker you and your husband and baby molly and your cats. stay safe. we'll check on you tomorrow. and i know there are lots of good people in this country who are praying for you and wishing you a peaceful night. other floridians choosing to hunker down, but experts warn this hurricane storm surge could be deadly. joining me again is abc chief meteorologist ginger zee. ginger. what makes milton so dangerous? >> so, byron, first and foremost, it's important to get out for first responders because they're the ones that have to risk their lives to save you. but i cannot tell you the power of water. watching it here, moving things from outside in the sea, inside the entire ocean has come in. and the power and force i've watched it rip homes from their foundation. it is not something to take lightly. it's a violent force that you want to avoid at all costs. storm surge, basically water piling up inside

and ahead of the hurricane that eventually gets slammed onto shore. in this abc news virtual view, we can see that in the center of the hurricane, as pressure falls, water levels rise. all that water piling up while it's still over the open ocean. as a hurricane closes in on land, the strong winds push that water toward the coast, and it has nowhere left to go but up and inland. this is what might look like inside a home taking on storm surge, the water approaching quickly and viciously entering your home and quickly climbing. and when storm surge combines with high tide, the rapid rise in water can actually move a home. something i watched with my own eyes in hurricane michael in 2018. i just saw something i have never seen in real life. i saw an entire home taken off of its foundation and rolled down the street. another critical reason you might want to leave. the wind. just this summer, the

insurance institute for business and home safety showing gma its hurricane simulator and what it can do to a home when it's dialed up to a cat three. 125 mile per hour winds. chunks of the roof ripped off the ceiling collapsing, exposing the home and anyone inside to the full wrath of the storm. that dangerous wind not just obliterating the roof. this two by four cannon reminding us what deadly flying debris can do when it's launched by a hurricane. piercing through the window wall and even the couch on the other side. with windows so vulnerable in a hurricane, experts shared this advice as you leave. close all interior doors. it can help contain the wind to just that part of the house and limit damage. damage. >> our thanksl clean?

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>> hurricane milton is expected to be out to the atlantic by

thursday afternoon, but for now, the storm's full impact is still hours from being realized. for the very latest. tune in to gma in the morning and abc news live streaming on disney plus. that's nightline for this evening. our thoughts are with everyone in florida. we'll see you right back here. same time tomorrow. thanks for the company, america. good night. >> the case against sean combs might as well just be called the freak off's. >> freak off's? what prosecutors described as, sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy, interstate transportation for prostitution, the ak 47 seconds, the thousand bottles of baby oil. diddy in court pleading not guilty and denied bail. >> this very powerful man in the music industry decided to use his power to hurt others. time is up. >> diddy drugs, lies and freak offs now streaming on hulu. abc's david muir