Florida‘s iconic Tropicana Field took a major hit on Wednesday when Hurricane Milton roared through the Tampa Bay area.

The once-in-a-century storm tore through Florida’s west coast and made landfall in Siesta Key on the night of Wednesday, October 9. The region was battered with relentless winds and torrential rain, leaving destruction in its path.

The strong winds proved too much for the roof of Tropicana Field, the home of the Tampa Bay Rays.

Florida‘s iconic Tropicana Field took a major hit on Wednesday when Hurricane Milton roared through the Tampa Bay area

Image credits: ABC Action News

 

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In just a few hours, the stadium’s roof was destroyed and chunks of it were ripped away. No injuries were reported from the stadium.

“That’s awful. I hope the people inside are safe,” a social media user said while another wrote, “Blew the roof off the place.”

“Stay strong Florida,” commented another. “You guys are the toughest Americans known. You will get through this. Praying for everyone.”

The stadium was not being used as a shelter but was set up as a staging area for first responders

NEW: Drone shots over Tropicana field show pieces of the roof scattered across the baseball diamond — and on top of the hundreds of beds that were set up for responders https://t.co/rNGInPf8xS

— Max Chesnes (@MaxChesnes) October 10, 2024

The stadium was reportedly not being used as a shelter for residents at the time of the deadly storm. However, it was being used as a staging area for first responders.

When the stadium’s roof was ripped off, there were 13 “essential” team personnel inside.

The Rays did not green-light the stadium to be used as a shelter for people because they had concerns about whether the structure could withstand the storm.

“That’s awful. I hope the people inside are safe,” a social media user said while another wrote, “Blew the roof off the place.”

pic.twitter.com/VtHxuL5Mjc

— Bill Carl Johnson (@BC_Johnson) October 10, 2024

“No first responders were being staged at the Trop and the essential personnel that were there are all accounted for and safe,” a spokesperson for Tropicana Field told FOX 13 News.

A spokesperson for the Rays said the roof is made of “six acres of translucent, Teflon-coated fiberglass and supports itself with 180 miles of cables connected by struts.”

The deadly storm left more than 1.6 million residents in Florida without power

One of my security agents inside @tropicanafield pic.twitter.com/eFyHOvPZQm

— Ryan Stryker (@Stryker175) October 10, 2024

“The thing about Hurricane Milton is it has visited in the hours of darkness. And while a hurricane takes place, then search and recovery teams and people who make these assessments, make them properly when they can actually see the damage,” said US correspondent for Sky News, James Matthews.

“It felt, I have to say, much as predicted, a hugely strong storm. You felt the power of the wind, the rain,” he added. “There was the storm surge at coastal points in Central Florida.”

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