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Huge hole in the roof of Melbourne Orlando Airport: See Milton damage

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Huge hole in the roof of Melbourne Orlando Airport: See Milton damage

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A video shows how strong winds from Hurricane Milton ripped a hole the size of a standard basketball court in the roof of an airport on Florida's east coast late Wednesday.

The storm made landfall near Siesta Key on the state's west coast as a Category 3 hurricane with sustained winds of 120 mph, the National Hurricane Center reported.

Earlier in the morning, as Milton traveled east, it exited Melbourne Orlando International Airport with a 30-by-40-foot hole in the roof, airport general manager Greg Donovan told Florida Today, part of the USA TODAY Network.

The airport is located approximately 25 miles south of Cape Canaveral in Brevard County.

Watch Milton tear a hole in the roof at Melbourne Orlando Airport

Damaged parts fell into the center of the terminal

A large portion of the airport's ceiling collapsed around 2 a.m., Donovan said.

“We collapsed a large portion of our skylight, technically called the Caul Wall, in the middle of the terminal,” Donovan said. The good news, he said, is that “it's been very dry since the first wave, so we haven't had a lot of water intrusion.”

The damaged pieces fell in the middle of the terminal, which was closed to the public at the time.

Regard: Video shows a massive 28-foot wave crash before Milton Florida hits

The airport was closed when Milton blew a hole in the airport's roof

The airport was closed at the time and no injuries were reported.

“We are very grateful to our team and how well they responded to this situation,” Donovan said. “It could have been a lot worse.”

Donovan said he is mobilizing crews to repair the roof and limit the water damage.

Airport staff had already noticed that the roof section was damaged before the damage and cordoned off the area.

Donovan estimated the repair costs would be in the “high tens of thousands” of dollars.

“We need to calm the conditions a little bit to fix the problem,” Donovan said.

On Thursday he said the airport was scheduled to open on Friday.

Aftermath of Hurricane Milton in Florida

As of Thursday afternoon, at least seven people had died as a result of the Milton disaster, which flooded neighborhoods and destroyed homes and businesses across the state. Two deaths were confirmed in St. Petersburg, one in Volusia County and four more in St. Lucie County on Florida's east coast following tornadoes there.

Millions also remain without electricity.

This article has been updated to add new information.

Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] and follow her on X @nataliealund.

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