The cyclone had maximum sustained winds of 120mph (205kph) as it roared ashore 8.30pm local time.

President Joe Biden has a “productive” conversation with Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu. A view from the ground in Tampa as Hurricane Milton closes in on Florida, plus a look at how climate change is making hurricanes stronger. U.S. election workers seek to protect the integrity of the voting process.

The cyclone had maximum sustained winds of 120mph (205kph) as it roared ashore 8.30pm local time.

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Hurricane Milton crashed into Florida as a Category 3 storm Wednesday, pounding the coast with ferocious winds of over 100 mph (160 kph), heavy rain and producing a series of tornadoes around the state. Tampa avoided a direct hit.The cyclone had maximum sustained winds of 120 mph (205 kph) as it roared ashore 8:30 p.m. near Siesta Key, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said. Siesta Key is a prosperous strip of white-sand beaches that's home to 5,500 people about 70 miles (112 kilometers) south of Tampa. The Tampa Bay area has not taken a direct hit from a major hurricane in more than a century, but the storm was still bringing a potentially deadly storm surge to much of Florida’s Gulf Coast, including densely populated areas such as Tampa, St. Petersburg, Sarasota and Fort Myers.The National Weather Service said flash flooding was occurring in the Tampa Bay area, including St. Petersburg, where over 16 inches (41 centimeters) of rain has fallen so far. Heavy rains were also likely to…

More than 1.5 million homes and business lost power Wednesday night as Hurricane Milton, which many fear could become a historically damaging storm, made landfall in Florida. The category 3 storm brought…

Another potentially devastating storm barrelled toward the Florida coast on Sunday. Forecast models predicted the storm to hit the Tampa Bay area by midweek. Other southeastern American states affected…