Tropicana Field, home of Major League Baseball franchise the Tampa Bay Rays, has had its roof ripped off as Hurricane Milton made landfall in Florida on Wednesday.

The 42,000-capacity stadium is renowned for its glowing dome roof, which is made of Teflon-coated fiberglass, but it was ripped to shreds by the category-five hurricane. Winds of 120mph battered the St. Petersburg area, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.

The stadium was being used as a base for first responders, although local media reports indicate no injuries were suffered as a result of the structural damage. However, there are widespread power and water outages across the area.

Hurricane Milton comes two weeks after at least 225 people were killed by Hurricane Helene, which wreaked havoc across Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and North Carolina. Authorities are awaiting daylight to assess the damage and devastation caused by Hurricane Milton

Deanne Criswell, head of the federal response team, issued a stark warning to people in the area. She told the BBC: “The wind, even though it’s decreasing, the threats are not decreasing.

“With the increased amount of rain, with the threat of flash flooding happening, you need to stay put. Don’t go out, try to make sure you’re as safe as possible.”

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis underlined the gravity of the situation on Wednesday. He posted on X: “Now is the time to shelter in place. First responders are staged and ready to go, as soon as weather conditions allow. Search and rescue efforts will be well underway to save lives before dawn, and they will continue for as long as it takes.”

President Joe Biden announced on Wednesday that special measures had been taken to minimize the loss of life and infrastructure damage. He said: “I have approved emergency declaration requests from the State and the Seminole Tribe of Florida.

“We have thousands of federal personnel on the ground. And we have staged 20 million meals and 40 million liters of water. At my direction, Secretary of Defense Austin has pre-positioned search and rescue teams, helicopters, and high-water vehicles as close to the storm as possible so they are ready to conduct life-saving missions.

“Deanne Criswell will be on site tonight in Florida in the State’s Emergency Operations Center. And I will stay in close contact with her and senior officials over the next several hours.”

Hurricane Milton originated in the Gulf of Mexico and swept eastwards toward Florida’s Gulf Coast before making its way across the state to the Atlantic Coast. The eye of the storm has reached Cape Canaveral, with sustained winds of 85mph.