Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd reported that deputies helped a pregnant woman reach the hospital early Thursday morning. This occurred as Hurricane Milton caused widespread power outages, high winds, and flooding across Central Florida.
In a social media post, Judd explained that his office received a 911 call about a woman going into labor during the storm. However, the severe winds made it impossible for ambulances to respond. Instead, deputies went to the woman’s home to assist her and her partner, Javier.
Deputy Calderin helped Zenia, the expectant mother, into a patrol car, and they headed to the hospital. Meanwhile, deputies Jones and Goolsby drove one of Zenia’s relatives to the hospital as well. The sheriff shared a photo of the deputies with Zenia and her newborn, Jade.
Later that day, deputies returned to the hospital to check on the family. Polk County’s Director of Emergency Management, Paul Womble, confirmed that crews were shifting their efforts to assess damage and begin cleanup operations.
“Yesterday was focused on response, search and rescue, and life safety,” Womble stated. “Today, we are concentrating on several tasks, including clearing roads and collecting debris.”
As of Friday morning, over 2.3 million people in Florida were still without power due to the storm, which made landfall on Wednesday evening as a Category 3 hurricane, according to PowerOutage.us.
CNN reported that at least 16 people have lost their lives due to the storm. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis expressed concerns that the death toll may rise.
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