Hurricane Milton is expected to have a devastating impact on Florida as it approaches at Category 5 strength.
Current strength
At 8 a.m. Wednesday, Milton was downgraded to a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds up to 155 mph.
Milton was previously at Category 5 strength overnight.
Where is Milton now?
The National Hurricane Center provided an update at 5 a.m. Wednesday and said Milton was centered 300 miles southeast of Tampa.
Milton was moving to the northeast at 14 mph.
When will Milton hit?
Milton is expected to make landfall overnight Wednesday into Thursday.
The exact estimate, as of Wednesday morning, is that Milton will reach Florida sometime between midnight and 3 a.m. Thursday.
Where will Milton hit Florida?
If Milton stays on its current track, the eye of the storm will hit Florida anywhere from Tampa to Sarasota.
Strength at landfall
While Milton is likely to weaken before landfall, it’s still expected to be a major hurricane by the time it hits Florida.
Devastating storm surge
The National Hurricane Center is describing Milton’s expected storm surge as “destructive” and “life-threatening.”
It’s forecasted to be 10-15 feet along Florida’s western coast from Tampa to Port Charlotte. That’s high enough to overtake one-story buildings.
Flooding from coastline
Experts said rising water will move inland from the coastline and cause life-threatening inundation.
That is expected to happen during the next 36 hours.
Wind strength
Milton’s hurricane-force winds will extend outward up to 30 miles from the center of the storm.
Winds with the force of a tropical storm can extend out to 125 miles.
Strong wind path
Hurricane-force winds are expected near the west coast of Florida and well inland through the central part of the state.
The current track has those hurricane-force winds moving out on the Atlantic side, around Cocoa Beach. That will happen around midday Thursday.
Rainfall
Experts are predicting 6-12 inches of rainfall from Milton, with some areas getting up to 18 inches.
The heaviest rain will be in the central and northern parts of the Florida Peninsula through Thursday.
Flash floods
Heavy rainfall is expected to cause “catastrophic and life-threatening” flash flooding.
It doesn’t help that many areas within Milton’s path are already saturated from Hurricane Helene.
Tornadoes
Several tornadoes are possible in the Florida Peninsula on Wednesday, officials said.
Evacuation orders
Dozens of counties in Florida have issued evacuation orders -- some mandatory and others voluntary.
Click here to see the specific details for each of these counties.
- Charlotte County
- Citrus County
- Clay County
- Collier County
- DeSoto County
- Dixie County
- Glades County
- Hardee County
- Hernando County
- Hillsborough County
- Lee County
- Levy County
- Manatee County
- Marion County
- Miami-Dade County
- Nassau County
- Okeechobee County
- Pasco County
- Pinellas County
- Putnam County
- Sarasota County
- St. Johns County
- Sumter County
- Union County
- Volusia County
Evacuation timeline
The Associated Press reported Wednesday morning that time is running out for residents to evacuate the west coast in Florida.
Millions of people were ordered to leave, but some insisted they would stay. Authorities warned stragglers that their odds of surviving Milton are “grim.”
Tampa Bay area
The Tampa Bay area, which is home to more than 3.3 million people, faces the possibility of “widespread destruction,” according to the AP.
The area has avoided direct hits from major hurricanes for more than a century, the report says.
“Milton has the potential to be one of the most destructive hurricanes on record for west-central Florida,” the National Hurricane Center warned.
Traffic nightmare
Thousands of cars clogged Florida highways in the days ahead of Milton’s landfall.
Many roads in Florida are still flooded or scattered with debris in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.
Gas stations in Florida are also struggling to keep up with demand, the AP reported Tuesday. Long lines and empty pumps added to the stress of drivers trying to get north.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said state officials were working with fuel companies to keep bringing in gasoline ahead of Milton’s landfall.
As of Tuesday afternoon, about 16.5% of Florida gas stations were out of fuel, the AP said.
Climate change
Scientists believe climate change contributed to how rapidly Hurricane Helene intensified before hitting Florida, and they said the same is likely for Milton.
Scientists said human-caused climate change boosted Helene’s rainfall by about 10% and its winds by about 11%.
“Hurricane Helene and the storms that were happening in the region anyway have all been amplified by the fact that the air is warmer and can hold more moisture, which meant that the rainfall totals -- which, even without climate change, would have been incredibly high given the circumstances -- were even higher,” said Ben Clarke, a study co-author and a climate researcher at Imperial College London.
