What to know about Hurricane Milton after it slammed Florida’s Gulf Coast [Video]

Hurricane Milton slammed into Florida as a Category 3 storm, bringing powerful winds, heavy rain and tornadoes to much of the Gulf Coast, including communities already battered by deadly Hurricane Helene. By early Thursday, Milton — weakened, but still dangerous — was moving off Florida’s east coast as a Category 1 storm, with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph, the National Hurricane Center said. Milton was expected to continue to move away from the peninsula and to the north of the Bahamas.Tornadoes touched down across the state before the storm made landfall. The Spanish Lakes Country Club near Fort Pierce, on Florida’s Atlantic Coast, was hit particularly hard, with homes destroyed. Four residents were killed, St. Lucie County officials said.The hurricane made landfall near Siesta Key, a barrier island of white sand beaches south of the Tampa Bay area, which is home to more than 3.3 million people.Millions of people …