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Tampa Bay Residents May Lack Power for Up to Week After Milton

A downed tree and blocked-in vehicle after hurricanes Helene and Milton in St. Pete Beach, Florida, US, on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. Hurricane Milton’s devastating path across Florida has left at least 10 dead, millions without power, and destroyed homes and crops, as authorities warn it could take days to assess the full extent of the damages. (Tristan Wheelock/Bloomberg)

(Bloomberg) -- Florida utilities said many of their customers who lost power from Hurricane Milton will have it restored by early next week, although some in the hardest hit areas in Tampa Bay likely will be in the dark until Thursday. 

More than 50,000 utility workers from the US and Canada have descended on Florida to repair downed wires and poles after Milton tore a devastating path through the central part of the state, destroying homes and killing at least 10 people. About 1.5 million homes and business remained without electricity as of 12 p.m. local time, according to Poweroutage.us.

“We’re going to continue to prioritize this effort until everyone is reconnected and back online,” President Joe Biden said Friday at the White House. Damage from Milton alone could reach $50 billion, Biden said. 

Tampa Electric, which serves the city of Tampa, aims to restore power to essentially all customers in Hillsborough and Pinellas counties by Thursday, the utility said in a post on its website. 

“We wish to assure customers that their power will be restored within a week, if not much sooner, following this historic hurricane,” Archie Collins, president and chief executive officer of Tampa Electric, said in a statement late Friday. 

Florida’s largest investor-owned utility, Florida Power & Light, is targeting power restoration to 90% of customers by Monday night, the utility said in statement. The hardest hit counties may not get restored until end-of-day Thursday.  

“We will continue to work around the clock until everyone’s lights are on,” FPL CEO Armando Pimentel said during a Friday afternoon press conference. 

Duke Energy Florida will restore power to the overwhelming majority of customers by end-of-day Sunday, the power company said Friday. Two counties on the coast near Tampa, Pasco and Pinellas, will see power restored to the majority of customers by Tuesday.

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“It’s only been a few days since Hurricane Milton tore through the state, leaving behind unimaginable destruction and more than a million of our customers without power,” Todd Fountain, Duke Energy Florida storm director, said in a statement Saturday. “While we’ve already made significant restoration progress in that short time, we will not stop until we get the lights back on for all our customers.”

©2024 Bloomberg L.P.