The Morning: Hurricane Milton's destruction

Plus, the 2024 election, Hezbollah and the Harlem Renaissance.

View in browser|nytimes.com October 10, 2024 Good morning. Today, my colleagues tell you the latest about Hurricane Milton. We're also covering the 2024 election, Hezbollah and the Harlem Renaissance. —David Leonhardt The tattered roof of Tropicana Field.  Ryan Bass/X A deadly night By Patricia Mazzei and Yan Zhuang We have reporters in Florida, at the center of the storm. Hurricane Milton is tearing across Florida. It has flooded the state from coast to coast and knocked out power for more than three million homes and businesses. It spewed tornadoes that killed people far from the storm's eye, destroyed homes and shredded the roof of the Tampa Bay Rays' stadium. See a map of the storm's path. Last night, Milton made landfall as a Category 3 storm near Sarasota, halfway down Florida's Gulf Coast. It has spent the night slicing across the state, weakening but remaining a hurricane. It is expected to exit into the Atlantic soon. The full extent of the damage will become clear as the sun rises. Forecasters warned that storm surge could reach up to 13 feet, bringing a wave to the coast near Tampa Bay. Most of Florida is under a state of emergency. Several counties suspended emergency services because the conditions were too dangerous. Today, we will explain how this storm became so bad and give you the latest news as the country wakes up to Milton's damage. A hurricane and tornadoes? Milton was deadly even before it made landfall. Tornadoes spun out of its edges. At least 116 tornado warnings were issued across the state, Gov. Ron DeSantis said. Tornadoes killed people in Fort Pierce, on the east coast. Search and rescue efforts are underway there now. So how did that happen? Tornadoes are usually associated with America's flat plains. Thunderstorms can cause tornadoes, as they do in the South and Midwest. But often, the outer edges of hurricanes contain strong thunderstorms, too. Tornadoes that accompany hurricanes are usually weak and short-lived. Those accompanying Milton were more intense — "a little out of the ordinary," said a storm expert. "It's quite a day." He said it was a probably a sign of more to come. Two in two weeks In Orlando.  Mauricio Lima for The New York Times Florida has been hit by two deadly hurricanes in two weeks. The number of storms in the region varies from year to year. But experts say that storms are turning into hurricanes more frequently because climate change is heating the oceans. Record hot water temperatures fueled Milton, which escalated from a tropical storm to a Category 5 hurricane in a day. Tropical storms are much more likely to turn into strong hurricanes during marine heat waves, experts say. Those are now more frequent. Experts predict that this hurricane season will continue to be busy, a forecast which made one meteorologist in Florida emotional on air. His comments went viral. "This is just horrific," he said, adding: "The seas are just so incredibly, incredibly hot." More on Milton Milton is still whipping Florida with winds of 85 m.p.h. Read the latest. Some counties on the west coast have started recovery efforts, clearing debris even before dawn. Florida officials told more than seven million people to evacuate, The A.P. reports. That's around a third of the state. See photos and video of their preparations. Still, some people chose to stay. "We've been through a lot of these," one resident told CNN. "I just feel safer here than elsewhere." Conspiracy theories and misinformation about the storm are spreading. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene posted on social media that "they" control the weather, without indicating who "they" might be. President Biden called the misinformation dangerous. More on the preparations Tampa General Hospital built a temporary wall. Some hospitals have evacuated patients, and others have canceled surgeries. Zookeepers in Tampa stayed to protect the animals. Some North Carolina families sought refuge in Florida after Hurricane Helene ripped through their towns. Now they're in the midst of another storm. THE LATEST NEWS The Democratic Campaign Kamala Harris descends from Air Force Two. Erin Schaff/The New York Times Kamala Harris and Democrats have raised more than $1 billion since she entered the race. That's more than Trump has raised all year. The makers of the game Cards Against Humanity are trying to help Democrats in swing states by offering $100 to former nonvoters who agree to mock Trump publicly and make a voting plan. Harris has a standard interview strategy, The Times's Michael Bender explains: answering the question she wants, not the one that was asked. The Republican Campaign Trump recently suggested that migrants bring "bad genes" into the country. "A murderer, I believe this, it's in their genes," he said. "And we got a lot of bad genes in our country right now." In a phone call with supporters, Trump repeatedly referred to Maine's governor as a man. (She is Janet Mills.) In emails, the Trump campaign has promoted dozens of contests to win signed merchandise or trips to meet Trump. Most seem to have no winners. Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s support for Trump has put the so-called medical freedom movement, which opposes vaccine mandates and embraces alternative medicine, closer to real power in Washington. More on Politics In a debate for an Arizona Senate seat, Ruben Gallego, the Democrat, and Kari Lake, the Republican, sparred over immigration and abortion. Jon Tester, a vulnerable Senate Democrat, trails his Republican challenger in Montana. Democratic Senate candidates in Florida and Texas are also behind, the latest New York Times/Siena College polls find. If Tester loses, Democrats are very likely to lose control of the Senate, Nate Cohn explains. The Manhattan district attorney's office has opened another corruption investigation into City Hall. Middle East The site of an Israeli strike in southern Lebanon.  Bilal Kashmar/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images Hezbollah militants fought ground battles with Israeli forces in southern Lebanon. The conflict there has displaced nearly a million people, according to the U.N. The Lebanese government said most of the country's shelters were full. Biden and Benjamin Netanyahu spoke over the phone about Israel's plans to retaliate against Iran. The call came as the U.S. and Israel have their worst relationship in years. The rivalry between Netanyahu and his defense minister, Yoav Gallant, has complicated Israel's response to an Iranian missile attack, The Washington Post reports. More International News Progressives in the European Parliament sang an antifascist song at Hungary's prime minister, who was visiting to deliver a speech. Nima Rinji Sherpa, 18, became the youngest person to climb the 14 highest mountains. Other Big Stories Rafael Nadal in 2022. Pete Kiehart for The New York Times Rafael Nadal, the 22-time Grand Slam champion, is retiring from tennis soon. See his emotional goodbye video. The Supreme Court is considering the case of Richard Glossip, a death row inmate in Oklahoma. He was convicted of arranging to have his boss killed on the testimony of the killer, who appears to have lied on the witness stand. New York will close a tent shelter that houses thousands of migrants on Randall's Island, a sign that the city's migrant crisis is easing. An explosion of particles from a solar storm is expected to reach Earth today. It could produce Northern Lights in much of the U.S. and may disrupt power grids. Opinions K-12 students may never recover academically from Covid lockdowns. Both presidential candidates should address the crisis, Jessica Grose writes. Washington is spending billions to upgrade America's nuclear weapons. It will take us back to the insanity of the 20th century's arms race, W.J. Hennigan writes. Don't pack the Supreme Court. Introduce term limits to deal with the randomness of open seats, David French argues. Here are columns by Charles Blow on Harris's worrisome similarity to Mitt Romney and Zeynep Tufekci on Elon Musk's political influence. A subscription to match the variety of your interests. News. Games. Recipes. Product reviews. Sports reporting. A New York Times All Access subscription covers all of it and more. Subscribe today. MORNING READS A six-layer cake, inspired by suffragists. Esther Choi Protest pastries: Younger bakers are reviving a political tradition. Social Qs: "My grandmother paid for my sister's I.V.F. I feel ripped off." Coolest job: Antarctica has a new postmaster, The Guardian reports. Manicure: Rainbow gel nails with a chrome design cost $255. Here's why. Lives Lived: Ratan Tata stayed out of the limelight. But he transformed his family's Indian business conglomerate, the Tata Group, into a multinational corporation. He died at 86. SPORTS M.L.B.: The New York Mets are heading to the championship series after Francisco Lindor's swing of a lifetime gave them a 4-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies. The Yankees beat the Kansas City Royals 3-2. W.N.B.A.: The New York Liberty and Minnesota Lynx meet tonight in Game 1 of the finals. ARTS AND IDEAS "Looking for Langston," the 1989 film and art installation by Isaac Julien. Isaac Julien The Harlem Renaissance was an explosion of Black art, music, writing and political thought. It was also a formative period for L.G.B.T. figures, who lived, performed and partied across Harlem. As Henry Louis Gates Jr. has written, Renaissance-era Harlem was "surely as gay as it was Black." A new Times article explores aspects of this history, including Ma Rainey, who sang about her attraction to women, and the Savoy Ballroom, which hosted drag balls. More on culture Jenna Fischer, who played Pam in "The Office," revealed that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer and successfully had it treated. She urged women to get screened. The Met announced its next blockbuster fashion exhibition: "Superfine: Tailoring Black Style," on the history of the Black dandy. Jordan Klepper of "The Daily Show" joked about where Harris was showing up in her media blitz: "News shows, daytime talk shows, satellite radio, podcasts, your kid's piano recital." THE MORNING RECOMMENDS … Christopher Testani for The New York Times Turn cold-weather pasta into something luxurious with garam masala. Stop cutting a hole in the top of your jack-o'-lantern. Improve your sewing with this tiny $3 gadget. GAMES Here is today's Spelling Bee. Yesterday's pangrams were ethanol and nonlethal. And here are today's Mini Crossword, Wordle, Sudoku, Connections and Strands. Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you tomorrow. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Reach our team at themorning@nytimes.com. Editor: David Leonhardt Deputy Editor: Adam B. Kushner News Editor: Tom Wright-Piersanti Associate Editor: Lauren Jackson News Staff: Desiree Ibekwe, Sean Kawasaki-Culligan, Brent Lewis, German Lopez, Ian Prasad Philbrick, Ashley Wu News Assistant: Lyna Bentahar Saturday Writer: Melissa Kirsch Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. You received this email because you signed up for the Morning newsletter from The New York Times, or as part of your New York Times account. To stop receiving The Morning, unsubscribe. To opt out of other promotional emails from The Times, including those regarding The Athletic, manage your email settings. To opt out of updates and offers sent from The Athletic, submit a request. 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