Hurricane Milton‘s devastating winds ripped through the roof of Tropicana Field on Wednesday, with dramatic new footage showing the damage done to the stadium.
The St. Petersburg ballpark – home to MLB franchise the Tampa Bay Rays – had been transformed into a base for around 10,000 first responders and emergency service personnel in anticipation of the monster storm.
According to the NY Times, its roof was built to withstand winds of up to 115 mph. Wind speeds of 101 mph were detected in St. Petersburg at 10:30pm Wednesday.
Initial footage posted on social media showed huge holes in the domed roof, with material flapping in the vicious winds.
Now the full extent of Hurricane Milton’s catastrophic impact on Tropicana Field can be seen in new videos of the ballpark, which has virtually been left without a roof.
Hurricane Milton’s devastating winds ripped through the Tropicana Field roof on Wednesday
Whole panels have been blown off the top of the arena by the storm, with the baseball field also ripped up and covered in debris.
The Rays released a statement on Thursday which read: ‘During the past couple weeks, our beloved city, region and state have been impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. We are devastated by the damage incurred by so many.
‘Our priority is supporting our community and our staff. We are fortunate and grateful that no one was hurt by the damage to our ballpark last night.
‘Over the coming days and weeks, we expect to be able to assess the true condition of Tropicana Field. In the meantime, we are working with law enforcement to secure the building.
‘We ask for your patience at this time, and we encourage those who can to donate to organizations in our community that are assisting those directly impacted by these storms.’
The Rays did not have any more MLB fixtures lined up at Tropicana Field this year after failing to make it into the playoffs.
Whole panels have been blown off the top of the MLB stadium by the monster storm
The home of the Tampa Bay Rays has been left completely devastated in its wake
The ballpark had initially been transformed into a base for first responders ahead of the storm
After Hurricane Milton slammed into Florida’s gulf coast, Friday’s NBA preseason game in Orlando between the Magic and the New Orleans Pelicans was swiftly cancelled.
National Guard and other first responders were stationed at the ballpark in order to help with relief efforts. There were no immediate reports of injuries inside.
The Rays have been based in St Petersburg since the franchise’s first season in 1998 and, late last year, the team reached an agreement with the city and Pinellas County to build a new $1.3billion ballpark on the site of Tropicana Field.
After 17 years of waiting and botched proposals, the plan was officially approved in July.
The new stadium, which will hold up to 34,000 fans for Rays games, is due to be completed in time for the 2028 season. Work is slated to start in January 2025.
By midnight on Wednesday, at least two deaths had been reported at a retirement community following a suspected tornado on Florida’s eastern coast.
More than 1.8million homes and businesses in Florida were without power in a state already battered by Hurricane Helene two weeks ago.
As many as two million people were ordered to evacuate, with millions more living in the projected path of the storm.
Much of the southern US experienced the deadly force of Hurricane Helene as it cut a swath of devastation through Florida and several other states. Both storms are expected to cause billions of dollars in damage.
This article was originally published by a www.dailymail.co.uk . Read the Original article here. .