Follow live coverage on Hurricane Milton from Florida, as the major hurricane nears landfall on the Gulf Coast.
Join live ongoing coverage in the video player above from our sister station WKMG in Orlando, streaming live on Local 4+
Hurricane Milton, a Category 3 storm, is churning toward Florida’s west coast. The Tampa Bay area, home to more than 3.3 million people, is facing the possibility of widespread destruction after avoiding direct hits from major hurricanes for more than a century.
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.