Hurricane hunters have captured stunning footage of their journey into the eye of Hurricane Milton just hours before it made landfall on the Florida coast.
The hurricane caused extensive damage along Florida’s Gulf Coast.
Late on Wednesday evening, winds reportedly reached approximately 205km/h.
Hurricane Milton’s path
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Aircraft Operations shared footage of their efforts to map Hurricane Milton’s path, aiding in life-saving forecasts.
The footage captures the NOAA crew flying directly into the storm, experiencing extreme turbulence.
A video from NOAA engineer Nick Underwood shows torrential rain pounding the Lockheed WP-3D Orion as it approaches Hurricane Milton’s eye.
Inside the aircraft, items are tossed around while crew members cling to their seats, secured only by their seatbelts.
Posting a video of their trip, the crew wrote: ‘Bumpy ride into Hurricane Milton on NOAA WP-3D Orion.’
Public Affairs Specialist for NOAA Aircraft Operations Center, Jonathan Shannon, told the New York Post that the team has to do these trips because the team on the ground ‘cannot get this important data our forecasters need at this scale and resolution any other way.’
Assessing the damage
Meanwhile, residents of Florida neighborhoods hit by Hurricane Milton were assessing the damage on Friday from back-to-back storms that devastated swathes of the Sunshine State.
There were at least 16 Milton-related deaths, according to Florida law enforcement.
The storm came days after Hurricane Helene hit the state, requiring a massive clean-up operation.
While Hurricane Milton did not trigger the catastrophic surge of seawater that was feared in Florida, one of many states hit by Hurricane Helene about two weeks ago, the clean-up operation could take many weeks or months for some people.
The fifth-most-intense Atlantic hurricane on record, Milton could cost insurers alone up to $100 billion, analysts say.
The White House pledged government support as the full extent of the damage was still being surveyed.