What we're learning about 4 Volusia County residents killed during Hurricane Milton

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Updated  October 14, 2024 10:48pm EDT
FOX 35 Orlando
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Woman killed during Hurricane Milton

A family is seeking solace after a tree killed their loved one during Hurricane Milton. James and Karan Zahnen were in their Ormond Beach home when the tree fell, and Karan did not survive. The family tells us the two had been married for 52 years. Karan was retired from the Bethune Cookman athletics department. She enjoyed her family, traveling, and going to Tortugas games.

ORLANDO, Fla. - A Volusia County family is seeking solace after a loved one was killed during Hurricane Milton. 

James and Karan Zahnen were in their Ormond Beach home when a tree fell, and Karan did not survive. The family tells FOX 35 News that the two had been married for 52 years. 

James and Karan Zahnen were in their Ormond Beach home when a tree fell, and Karan did not survive. [Credit: Family photo]

Zahnen, 79, retired from the Bethune–Cookman University's athletics department. She enjoyed her family, traveling, and going to Tortugas games. 

She was one of four people who died in the county during the storm. The Volusia County Sheriff's Office released their names on Monday. 

Another woman was killed when a tree fell on her home as well. The sheriff's office said Mary Wagoner, 53, was in the bedroom of her Port Orange home at the time.

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Two other county residents suffered medical events during the storm, the sheriff's office said, including William Stone, of Ormond Beach, and Randal Snyder, of Orange City.

Stone, 89, suffered a medical event, but due to flooding, first responders were unable to get to his home right away. 

Snyder, 66, suffered a heart attack while boarding up his home ahead of Hurricane Milton, according to Volusia Sheriff Mike Chitwood. Chitwood remembered Snyder over the weekend as someone whose "family was his whole world." 

"He attended every concert, play, and soccer game the kids had," Sheriff Chitwood said in a Facebook post. "What a legacy to leave behind. My heart goes out to this family and each of the families who lost a loved one because of this storm."

When did Hurricane Milton make landfall over Florida? Where did Hurricane Milton make landfall?

Hurricane Milton made landfall over Siesta Key, Florida, south of Tampa, on Wednesday night, Oct. 9, as a Category 3 hurricane. It then trekked across Central Florida before reaching the Atlantic Ocean.

Record-setting tornado warnings in Florida ahead of Hurricane Milton

Before Milton made landfall, more than 120 tornadoes were issued across Florida, the most ever issued in a 24-hour period across the state. Not every warning resulted in a confirmed tornado.

Cocoa Beach was hit especially hard after a tornado impacted that area, ripping the roofs off homes.

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Tornado damages homes in Cocoa Beach during Milton

Ahead of Hurricane Milton, suspected tornadoes damaged homes in Cocoa Beach. FOX 35 meteorologist Noah Bergren surveyed the damage and talks to one homeowner about his experience during the storm.

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