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Hurricane Milton: New video footage shows devastation to Tropicana Field after roof ripped off

Brian Jones Profile Picby:Brian Jones•10/10/24•

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Kim Klement Neitzel-USA TODAY Sports

Hurricane Milton hit Florida’s Gulf Coast on Wednesday and Tropicana Field, the home of the Tampa Bay Rays, suffered major damage to its roof. Videos and photos on social media showed the roof being ripped off because of the high winds that came with the Category 3 storm.

Jeff Butera of Bay News 9 in Tampa went to social media to share footage and say the roof was designed to withstand 115 mph winds (per the Rays media guide). He also mentioned the stadium is “the world’s largest cable-supported domed roof, made of six acres of translucent, Teflon-coated fiberglass.”

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According to ESPN, Tropicana Field was designated as a staging site for first responders and state and local emergency management services aiding with debris removal. It was set up to host 10,000 people, with cots placed on the playing surface. Capt. Garth Swingle of St. Petersburg Fire Rescue told ABC News the people inside the stadium were safe. It’s not known if the stadium had damage inside.

On Thursday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Hurricane Milton was a significant storm but not “the worst-case scenario.” He told reporters that Sarasota County got hit the worst.

Tropicana Field to be replaced with $1.3 billion stadium

“We will better understand the extent of the damage as the day progresses,” DeSantis said. “The storm was significant but thankfully, this was not the worst-case scenario.”

Tropicana Field opened in 1990 and initially cost $138 million. The stadium will be replaced in 2028 with a $1.3 billion ballpark.

“The coolest part is how close the fans will be to the field and how close a connection they’ll feel to the game that’s being played on the field,” Rays president Matt Silverman said earlier this year, per MLB.com. “In the past, ballparks were designed before [protective] nets were required, so there was a distance that you needed from the field for safety. And when you have a larger capacity, it makes it much more difficult to put the seats close to the field because the geometry doesn’t work.

“Knowing where we are today, we’re able to minimize foul territory and bring all of the seats much closer to the field of play, creating an energy and intimacy that doesn’t exist in baseball. … This will be, we think, the most intimate ballpark in baseball.”