Hurricane Milton, the fifth storm to hit the Gulf Coast this year, made landfall along Florida's west-central coast on October 9 night as a Category 3 hurricane, unleashing a barrage of extreme weather conditions across the Sunshine State.

The storm, which was predicted to hit the mainland at the highest intensity of Category 5, struck Siesta Key, approximately 112 kilometres south of Tampa, sparing the city a direct hit but still causing significant damage and disruption. As Milton traversed the Florida peninsula, it left a trail of destruction in its wake, with widespread power outages, flooding, and tornado activity reported across multiple counties.

The National Weather Service issued a flash flood emergency for the Tampa area, with St. Petersburg recording over 40 centimetres of rainfall in 24 hours. Wind speeds reached 119 kilometres per hour, with gusts of up to 157 kilometres per hour reported at Middle Tampa Bay.

More than 3.2mn homes and businesses were left without electricity as the storm battered the state's power infrastructure. The iconic fabric roof of Tropicana Field, home to the Tampa Bay Rays baseball team, was torn to shreds by the fierce winds.

Governor Ron DeSantis reported that Florida had experienced over 100 tornado warnings and 19 confirmed touchdowns on October 9, with damage reported in numerous counties. Tragically, multiple fatalities were confirmed in St. Lucie County following a tornado outbreak in the area.

The storm's impact extended beyond wind and rain damage. Storm surge remained a significant concern along many parts of Florida's coastline, with Venice Beach reporting an estimated 1.8 to 2 metres of surge. The National Hurricane Center warned that Milton was expected to remain a hurricane as it crossed the Florida Peninsula, despite weakening to a Category 2 storm.

As dawn broke on October 10, local officials urged residents to remain indoors, citing hazards such as downed power lines, blocked roads, and continued flooding.

The devastation wrought by Hurricane Milton compounds the misery already inflicted by Hurricane Helene just two weeks prior, which caused significant flooding and claimed over 230 lives across the southern United States.

As Milton moves off Florida's Atlantic coast, authorities are beginning to assess the full extent of the damage. With the storm still posing a threat to the eastern seaboard, residents of Georgia and South Carolina have been warned to remain vigilant for potential storm surges and high winds.

"The ocean temperature in the Gulf of Mexico is at or near record levels right now and this provides hurricanes over that region with plenty of 'fuel'," Joel Hirschi, associate head of marine systems modelling at the National Oceanography Centre (NOC), told BBC News.

"There is growing evidence that the time needed for tropical cyclones to intensify to powerful category four or five storms is reducing as climate warms. The rapid intensifications we have seen in the Atlantic for Beryl, Helene and now Milton follow that pattern."

The frequency and intensity of hurricanes striking Florida this season have raised concerns about the state's resilience and preparedness in the face of increasingly severe weather events. As clean-up efforts begin, questions are likely to arise about long-term strategies for mitigating the impact of future storms on vulnerable coastal regions.