The Tampa Bay Rays' stadium roof was devastated by Hurricane Milton

TAMPA, Fla. (TNND) – Hurricane Milton spared nothing in its path, including Tropicana Field, home of the Tampa Bay Rays, as it slammed into Florida's Gulf Coast on Wednesday evening.

The Category 3 storm quickly tore through the roof panels of the stadium and scattered debris across the pitch and large parts of the seating areas.

Drone video and images showed that the roof of the domed building was completely ripped apart, allowing a clear view of the stadium.

No injuries were reported at the stadium after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said earlier this week there was a plan to use the ballpark as a “temporary base camp” to support debris cleanup efforts and temporarily house first responders.

They have been relocated,” DeSantis said at a news conference Thursday morning. “Tropicana Field is a routine collection point for these things. The roof on it… I believe it's rated for 110 mph and so the forecast changes, but when it became clear that there would be something of that magnitude in the distance, they moved it out of Tropicana. There were no government assets at Tropicana Field.

There was no immediate word on the extent of damage within the facility or information on how long the roof replacement might take.

According to the Rays, the roof was designed to withstand winds of up to 110 mph. The stadium opened in 1990 at an initial cost of $138 million and is scheduled to be replaced by a $1.3 billion baseball stadium in time for the 2028 season.

In a message to fans on Thursday, the team said it was “devastated by the harm that has been caused to so many.”

“Over the past few weeks, our beloved city, region and state have been hit by Hurricanes Helene and Milton,” the team wrote. Our employees are happy and grateful that no one was injured as a result of the damage to our stadium last night. We expect to be able to assess the true condition of Tropicana Field in the coming days and weeks, working with law enforcement to secure the building, and we encourage those who can to donate to organizations in our community that help directly to help those affected by these storms.

Hurricane Milton made landfall near Siesta Key on Wednesday evening and caused devastating damage across the state, destroying homes and killing at least five people.

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Editor's note: The Associated Press contributed to this article.