NEW YORK, October 10. /TASS/. Hurricane Milton which made landfall in Florida on Wednesday night has weakened to a Category 1 storm, the US National Weather Service said.

The downgrade came as the hurricane, initially a Category 3 storm, is currently sweeping past Orlando while on its path eastwards, with sustained winds of 25 km per hour (15 mph).

Milton touched down near Siesta Key at around 8:35 p.m. local time (12:35 a.m. GMT - TASS) on Wednesday.

On October 7, US President Joe Biden declared the southeastern US state of Florida under state of emergency as Hurricane Milton approached and ordered assistance to local authorities. Previously, Hurricane Helene, which smashed into the southern United States in late September, killed more than 200 people and caused an estimated $35 bln worth of damage to the region.