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Polk County officials urge patience during Hurricane Milton recovery process

By FOX 13 News Staff
Updated  October 11, 2024 10:13am EDT
Polk County
FOX 13 News

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    LAKELAND, Fla. - Polk County officials are urging patience as recovery efforts begin in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton.

    At a news conference Friday morning, Polk County Director of Emergency Management Paul Womble said crews are turning their focus to damage assessments, which will continue through the weekend.

    Womble also acknowledged widespread power outages, saying it will take time to restore service, or to even have a timetable for when that could happen.

    "We're not able to answer your questions on the Citizens Information Line about when power will be restored," Womble said.

    The storm made landfall on Florida's Gulf coast as a major Category 3 hurricane Wednesday night, then moved east across the state, directly impacting Polk County and other inland areas.

    Milton's deadly impact on Polk County

    Milton is being blamed for the death of a Polk County employee who was hit and killed by a vehicle while crews were working on storm recovery in Fort Meade on Thursday morning.

    Officials said Bruce Kinsler, 68, was working with a crew that was cutting down a tree blocking U.S. 98 in Fort Meade.

    Elsewhere, a possible sinkhole nearly swallowed two homes Thursday on Willow Wisp Drive in Kathleen.

    For the latest storm recovery updates from Polk County Emergency Management, click here.

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