Hurricane Milton updates: 16 dead across Florida in storm's aftermath

Milton wreaked havoc on Hillsborough County, which encompasses Tampa, bringing over 1 foot of torrential rain, significant flash flooding and rough winds that downed trees and wires, Hillsborough County Fire Rescue Chief Jason Dougherty said.

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Milton ‘caused havoc’ on our community: Hillsborough fire chief

Chief Jason Dougherty of the Hillsborough County Fire Rescue discusses his biggest concerns in the wake of Hurricane Milton.

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Over 700 people were rescued on Thursday, Dougherty told ABC News Live.

And he warned that the danger isn’t over.

"Now we’re seeing our rivers crest, so that’s becoming a challenge, as well. So even as the storm has passed by, we’re still having rising waters," he said.

Dougherty urged residents to stay home and avoid surveilling the damage.

President Joe Biden will travel to Florida on Sunday to tour areas impacted by Hurricane Milton, the White House said. The White House has not yet released the cities the president will visit.

Hurricane Milton brought powerful winds and tons of rain to St. Pete Beach, just outside of St. Petersburg, along Florida’s west coast.

Milton struck as the city was still littered with debris from Hurricane Helene, Mayor Adrian Petrila told ABC News Live.

He said National Guardsmen returned to St. Pete Beach Thursday morning after Milton rolled through to clear downed power lines and downed trees from major roads to allow access back to the island.

But "the biggest thing is gonna be getting all the small side streets cleared off," the mayor said. "That’s gonna take days, if not weeks, to get everything cleared."

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Milton recovery will take ‘a very long time’: St. Pete Beach mayor

“Most of our homes are uninhabitable,” St. Pete Beach Mayor Adrian Petrila said.

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Besides the debris, Petrila said, "Our sewer system is down, we don’t have potable water. At this point, most of the homes are not habitable," Petrila said.

"Florida is resilient," he added. "We’re going to rebuild, we’re going to come back."

There have been 1,600 people and 140 animals rescued across Florida during Hurricane Milton, Gov. Ron DeSantis said.

Clearwater Beach recorded over 23 inches of rain while St. Petersburg faced nearly 19 inches of rain.

As Floridians venture back outside, DeSantis urged, "Please exercise caution, don’t wade into floodwaters. Be careful how you’re using ladders. Use generators properly."

With the cleanup process underway, the governor said Florida is not facing as much debris as he anticipated before landfall.

"We did not get the worst-case scenario, but we did get hit," DeSantis said.

He said 12,000 miles of state roads have been cleared and inspectors have conducted nearly 2,000 bridge inspections across impacted areas.