Category 5 Hurricane Milton is expected to strengthen on Tuesday as it threatens Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula on its way to Florida, where more than a million people have been ordered to evacuate.
Florida’s densely populated west coast, still reeling from the devastating effects of Hurricane Helena less than two weeks ago, is bracing for Wednesday’s impact.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center predicted the storm would likely hit the Tampa Bay metropolitan area, home to more than three million people and where some evacuees rushed to clear piles of debris left by Helene on its way out of the city.
With maximum sustained winds of 270 km/h, Milton is categorized as the strongest storm on the five-point Saffir-Simpson scale.
Wind speeds could drop to 233 km/h by the time it approaches Florida, according to the hurricane center. It would still be a Category 4 storm, meaning there would be catastrophic damage, including power outages lasting several days.
