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Hurricane Milton: The roof of the Rays’ Tropicana Field was ripped off as the storm made landfall in Tampa
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Hurricane Milton: The roof of the Rays’ Tropicana Field was ripped off as the storm made landfall in Tampa

The roof of Tropicana Field was quickly destroyed when Hurricane Milton made landfall in the Tampa Bay area on Wednesday.

The storm, which reached Category 5 over the Gulf of Mexico earlier this week, hit Florida’s west coast on Wednesday. Within hours, large sections of the roof at the home stadium of the Tampa Bay Rays began to peel away.

The Rays said before the storm that the stadium had not been used as a shelter for residents but had been set up as a staging area for first responders. According to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times, no injuries had been reported as of Wednesday evening.

According to the team’s media guide, the roof is made of “six acres of translucent, Teflon-coated fiberglass and relies on 180 miles of cable connected by struts.” It is designed to withstand wind speeds of up to 180 km/h.

Raymond James Stadium, home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was also quickly flooded with water. Unlike Tropicana Field, the stadium does not have a roof. The Buccaneers are on the road this week and left town early to avoid the hurricane.

Hurricane Milton formed over the Gulf of Mexico in recent days and quickly reached Category 5 status. It made landfall near Sarasota, Florida as a Category 3 storm. Forecasters warned that storm surge could reach as high as 13 feet in some areas of the Tampa Bay region, prompting dire warnings from authorities in the days before the storm.

Tampa Mayor Jane Castor even warned residents of mandatory evacuation zones that staying there would result in certain death.

“I can say without any dramatization: If you choose to stay in one of these evacuation areas, you will die,” Castor said on CNN.

According to the New York Times, more than 1.6 million Floridians were without power as of Wednesday evening, and there were more than two dozen reports of tornadoes or tornado-related damage across the state.

Tropicana Field is located in St. Petersburg, Florida, across from Tampa. It opened in 1990 and can accommodate more than 42,700 fans. The ballpark is the only one in the league with a permanent roof.

Raymond James Stadium is located in Tampa. It opened in 1998 and seats approximately 75,000.

Hurricane Milton is expected to have moved off Florida’s east coast by Thursday morning.

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