Hurricane Milton leaves a trail of destruction in Florida. An Afghan man arrested and charged with plotting an election day attack was a CIA guard. And an iconic Las Vegas casino is going out with a bang.

Here’s what you need to know today.

Milton hurtles through Florida after a devastating landfall

Communities in Florida are waking up to the devastation left behind by Hurricane Milton as the storm passed through the state – the second major hurricane in two weeks. Milton was a Category 3 storm when it made landfall near Siesta Key yesterday, but weakened to a Category 1 storm as it crossed the state, although the threat of flash flooding remains. More than 3 million customers in the state are without power.

Overnight, a picture of the damage emerged: part of the roof of Tropicana Field, home of the Tampa Bay Rays, was ripped offand a crane collapsed at a construction site in St. Petersburg. Video taken in West Palm Beach showed the strong winds and debris a window shattered. Gasps could be heard in the background.

A tornado outbreak touched down in the state hours before landfall. In St. Lucie County, where at least two people were killed, members of the Florida National Guard and local law enforcement were in “100% rescue mode” to help the victims. Sheriff Keith Pearson estimated that 100 homes were destroyed in the county after about 17 tornadoes touched down.

“Cars were lifted and turned upside down, moved hundreds of feet,” Pearson said. “I can tell you that in some of these places there was nothing left but foundations.”

Follow our live blog for the latest updates from Milton.

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More Hurricane Milton coverage:

• Milton intensified at one of the fastest paces in history. Here’s how.
• “We have to go!”: Watch Tom Llamas and his team from NBC News take cover while a transformer explodes.
• Some American hospitals do postpone elective surgeries amid an IV fluid shortage caused by Hurricanes Milton and Helene.
• A Tampa resident dubbed “Lieutenant Dan” after going viral during Hurricane Helene was planning to ride out of Milton on his boat, worrying local officials and his TikTok fans.

Inflation is expected to stabilize, but economic concerns remain

The latest monthly inflation figures are released this morning and are expected to show costs remained largely unchanged in September, according to Dow Jones estimates. But with prices on average more than 21% higher than in 2020, and some goods and services rising even more, consumers are still adjusting to a new normal.

Today’s inflation data could cause Wall Street traders to scale back expectations of a rate cut at the Federal Reserve’s next meeting in November. After an unexpectedly strong jobs report last week, Wall Street traders have all but erased the chances of another half-point decline.

Despite the apparent good health of the economy, Americans’ perceptions about this are strongly dividedand higher costs are among the top concerns of voters heading into the November election.

The Afghan accused of plotting a terrorist attack was a CIA officer

The Afghan man arrested this week on charges of planning a terrorist attack on Election Day worked as a security guard in Afghanistan for the CIA, according to two sources with knowledge of the matter. However, the FBI said it is still investigating whether 27-year-old Nasir Ahman Tawhedi became radicalized before or after he came to the US in 2021, about a month after the US military completed its chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan. Court documents show Tawhedi contributed to an ISIS charity in March and had access to online propaganda.

At the time of the withdrawal from Afghanistan, members of Congress and other U.S. officials expressed concern that tens of thousands of Afghan nationals were not properly screened before being evacuated. Now, the question of how and why Tawhedi was in the US has become politically charged, with Republican figures placing blame on the Biden administration.

Trump steps up attacks on Harris

Former President Donald Trump has roiled a crowd in Scranton, Pennsylvania, by attacking Vice President Kamala Harris, painting a grim picture of the country if Harris wins and dismissing calls to be ‘nice’ .

Among the insults Trump leveled at Harris: “a terrible person,” “a liar,” a “radical left-wing Marxist” and “not a smart person.” And he gave no indication that he would quiet the harsh rhetoric. “I don’t want to be nice,” Trump said. ‘Someone said: ‘You have to be nice sir, women won’t like that. The women want safety.”

Read more about the Scranton rally.

More election coverage:

➡️Trump does embarks on a blue state extravaganzawith events planned in Colorado, California, Illinois and New York. Some think the unorthodox campaign strategy could benefit the down-ballot races.

➡️ An NBC News poll found Harris and Trump voters see their candidates representing ‘change’ but in very different ways.

➡️ Harris’ presidential campaign operation has crossed the $1 billion fundraising threshold in September, two months after taking over as the Democratic Party candidate, two sources said.

➡️ Harris’ revelation that she owns a Glock caused a wave of criticism.

➡️ Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro confirmed he spoke with technology mogul Elon Musk last weekend, as both Trump and Harris stepped up their efforts in the battleground state but said politics never came up.

➡️Republican Kari Lake and Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego faced in a spirited debate in the Arizona Senate that covered the border, abortion, tax policy and more.

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Read all about it

• Country music star Garth Brooks mentioned the woman who accused him of rape in a lawsuit last week, claiming he is “the victim of a shakedown.”
• It’s been a year since California lawmakers passed the Ebony Alert system to address the disproportionate number of Black children who go missing or are abducted. Here’s how it goes.
• A new study explains the science behind it why some people think they are right even when they are so wrong.
• New York Liberty star Breanna Stewart seeks salvation in her second WNBA Finals appearance as the team faces the Minnesota Lynx.
• Harvard, Yale and dozens of other top private universities in the US are accused in a lawsuit of conspiring to overcharge students for their tuition.

Personnel choice: Goodbye, casino. Hello, stadium.

The iconic Tropicana casino was imploded to make way for a proposed $1.5 billion stadium to house the Oakland Athletics ahead of the team’s planned move to Sin City in 2028. The 2:30am implosion party including a drone and a fireworks show. Once the fanciest property on the Strip, the Tropicana spent its last decades catering to more budget-friendly guests. As one expert put it, Vegas has “moved away from being a value-based destination.” Now the city is chasing high-end customers with sports and entertainment options beyond the casino card tables, reports associate producer Maya Huter. — Rich Bellissenior business editor

NBC Select: Online shopping, simplified

Prime Big Deal Days may be officially over, but some deals are still active. View them here. If you haven’t finished shopping yet, Goal Circle Week And Walmart Holiday Deals are still going strong, which means NBC Select editors are still picking the best products at the best prices.

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