Hurricane Milton weakened to a Category 4 by early Tuesday, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami, but the storm still posed a dire threat to Florida as officials issued warnings to residents to evacuate ahead of landfall.
The Category 4 hurricane, bordering on Category 5, was expected to reach Florida's Gulf Coast between 10 p.m Wednesday and 2 a.m. Thursday, according to the latest forecasts.
“Time is running out," Gov. Ron DeSantis said on Tuesday. "But you do have time today to heed any evacuation orders and do what you need to do to protect yourself and our families.”
Milton appears headed for Tampa, where the National Hurricane Center is warning of up to 15 feet of storm surge.
At 8 a.m. ET, the storm was about 545 miles southwest of Tampa, moving at 12 mph, with sustained winds of 145 mph, making it a Category 4 storm, the second-highest rating.
On Monday afternoon, the NHC said the storm had "explosively" intensified into a "potentially catastrophic" Category 5 hurricane, before being downgraded to Category 4 Tuesday.
The storm could weaken to a Category 3 before it makes landfall Wednesday on the west coast of Florida, NBC News forecasters said.
U.S. & World
Still, by key measures, Milton is shaping up to be one of the most powerful Atlantic hurricanes on record, and it has done so in an astonishingly short amount of time, evolving from Tropical Depression 14 to a Category 5 hurricane in less than three days, according to NBC News.
As of 8 PM 10/7, #Milton has entered the top 5 most intense Atlantic hurricanes since records began. The NOAA Hurricane Hunters measured a minimum central pressure of 897 mb in Major Hurricane Milton this evening. pic.twitter.com/Fm1L7D1WlH
— NWS Jacksonville (@NWSJacksonville) October 8, 2024
Tampa Bay has not been hit directly by a major hurricane since 1921, and authorities fear luck is about to run out for the region and its 3.3 million residents. President Joe Biden approved an emergency declaration for Florida, and U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor said 7,000 federal workers were mobilized to help in one of the largest mobilizations of federal personnel in history, The Associated Press reported.
“This is the real deal here with Milton,” Tampa Mayor Jane Castor told a Monday news conference. “If you want to take on Mother Nature, she wins 100% of the time.
DeSantis said Monday that an around-the-clock operation to clear debris and fallen trees from Helene was underway ahead of Milton's arrival to minimize the threat from flying objects. He said Milton is expected to make landfall in Hillsborough or Pinellas County on Wednesday evening, and he preemptively issued emergency declarations for 51 counties.
Pinellas County, which occupies the Tampa Bay peninsula and its Atlantic-facing coast, has begun mandatory evacuations, according to a sheriff’s notice.
