Hurricane Milton barreled over Florida overnight Wednesday and Thursday morning, smashing buildings, flooding roads and homes, and taking out large chunks of power grids. As of Thursday morning, nearly 3 million outages have been reported, according to USA TODAY data, with Hillsborough, Pinellas, Lee and Sarasota counties the hardest hit.

As Florida processes back-to-back hurricanes and officials continue to assess the damage, here's what we know about the aftermath of Hurricane Milton and the path forward.

The lights are gradually turning back on for the hundreds of thousands of people without power in the Tampa Bay area following Hurricane Milton.

At least 16 people have died from Hurricane Milton, which roared onshore on Florida's west coast as a Category 3 hurricane, bringing tornadoes, powerful winds and flooding rains. The monster storm forced millions to evacuate and left widespread destruction across Florida.

The devastation around Hurricanes Helene and Milton has been complicated further by false and misleading information, much of it politically motivated

Hurricane season typically ends on November 30. The U.S. seldom faces hurricane threats that late — things tend to simmer by late October. But this year, there are signs another flare-up of storminess could come later in the month,