(NBC, KYMA/KECY) – Life-threatening storm surges are due to hit Florida’s Gulf Coast this week with the arrival of Hurricane Milton, which is strengthening over the southern Gulf of Mexico and set to make landfall as a powerful Category 3 storm on Wednesday.
Milton is now a Category 3 storm with sustained wind speeds of 120 miles-per-hour (MPH), the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said, making widespread evacuation orders likely across Florida.
The storm is forecast to make landfall on Wednesday evening in Florida, which along with the wider southeastern United States continues to recover from the impact of hurricane helene.
The NHC issued a storm surge warning early Monday for Florida’s Gulf Coast from Flamingo on the southern tip to the mouth of the Suwannee River, including Tampa Bay.
A hurricane watch is in place along the same coastline, from Chokoloskee near Everglades City, to the Suwannee River, while a tropical storm watch is in place further west to Indian Pass.
As of 7:00am Eastern, Milton was about 180 miles west-northwest of Progreso, Mexico, and about 750 miles west-southwest of Tampa, with maximum sustained wind speeds of near 120 MPH with higher gusts.
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