Hurricane Milton tracker and forecast: Milton intensifies into Category 5 in just hours
Milton, currently a Category 4 hurricane, is forecast to strengthen to a Category 5 within a few hours.
Milton is expected to weaken to a Category 3 hurricane by the time it approaches Florida Wednesday night. Landfall is expected late Wednesday or early Thursday.
Storm surge is a major threat.
A record-breaking storm surge of 8 to 12 feet is forecast for the Tampa Bay area. This comes as Floridians are still cleaning up from the record-setting 6 to 8 feet of storm surge that was just unleashed by Hurricane Helene.
Flooding is also expected.
Rain from a separate system is already drenching Fort Lauderdale and Miami on Monday and Tuesday, and then when Milton hits, more heavy rain is forecast from Tampa to Jacksonville. Locally, up to 15 inches of rain is possible in parts of Florida over the next three days.
A hurricane watch has been issued for Tampa, Orlando and Fort Myers.
-ABC News’ Max Golembo
