For the latest news on Hurricane Milton, visit USA TODAY’s hurricane tracker for Monday, Oct. 7.
Tropical Storm Milton formed in the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday, and forecasters expect the storm to rapidly strengthen into a major hurricane over the next few days.
Milton is expected to rapidly strengthen over the next 36 hours and could become a major Category 3 hurricane when it reaches the west coast of the Florida peninsula by midweek, causing life-threatening damage to parts of Florida’s west coast. poses a risk of This was announced by the National Hurricane Center. Areas most at risk are communities still feeling the effects of last month’s Hurricane Helen and 2022’s Hurricane Ian.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has declared a state of emergency for the following counties: Brevard County, Broward County, Charlotte County, Citrus County, Collier County, DeSoto County, Flagler County, Glades County, Hardy County, Hendry County, and Hernando County. , Highlands County, Hillsborough County, Indian River County, Lake County, Lee County, Manatee County, Marion, Martin, Miami-Dade, Monroe, Okeechobee, Orange, Osceola, Palm Beach, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, Putnam, Sarasota, Seminole, St. John’s, St. Lucie, Sumter, and Volusia.
The National Hurricane Center announced Saturday night that a hurricane watch could be issued for parts of Florida as early as late Sunday.
Jamie Rome, deputy director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami, said in a virtual briefing Saturday afternoon that Milton is expected to develop into a “potentially very high-impact hurricane” and hit the Florida peninsula on Tuesday or Wednesday. He said he was there.
Milton is expected to have maximum sustained winds of 115 mph by the time it makes landfall on the Florida Gulf Coast near St. Petersburg and Tampa. “That’s exactly the case with Category 2 to Category 3 hurricanes,” Rohm said.
All hurricanes produce life-threatening winds, but those that are Category 3 or higher are known as major hurricanes. Major hurricanes can cause catastrophic or catastrophic wind damage and loss of life. Hurricanes of all categories can produce deadly storm surges, rain flooding, and tornadoes.
Winds from Milton could reach 190 to 140 mph at landfall and “will cause structural damage,” AccuWeather senior meteorologist Bob Smerbeck said in a briefing Saturday afternoon.
Meanwhile, Hurricane Kirk is expected to generate swells in the Atlantic Ocean and impact the U.S. East Coast this weekend, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Latest News: ‘Life-threatening’: Milton predicts hurricane, targets stricken Florida
Tropical Cyclone Milton path tracker
Milton predicts heavy rain for Florida
Rohm said no evacuations have been ordered but may be necessary. The center said residents of the Florida peninsula should be well prepared for hurricanes and follow future forecasts and official notifications.
“Regardless of where the storm tracks, there will be widespread heavy rain and potential for flooding,” Roem said.
Milton is expected to become a hurricane Sunday night and rapidly intensify as it moves through the central and eastern Gulf Coast, intensifying into a major hurricane, the center said in an update Saturday night. It is said that The Mexican government issued a tropical storm watch Saturday night for the northern coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, from Celestun to Cancun.
Life-threatening storm surge and high winds are expected on the west coast of the Florida peninsula, less than two weeks after Hurricane Helen caused severe damage in the Southeast. Milton was 1,360 miles west-southwest of Tampa on Saturday night.
Meteorologist Brandon Buckingham said: “Cities still reeling from record high tides from Hurricane Helen face storm surge flooding, coastal inundation, heavy rain flooding, damaging wind gusts and extended power outages.” “We will once again be faced with such grave risks.” In AccuWeather’s Saturday Update. “The potential for rapid intensification is certainly a risk, and AccuWeather meteorologists are monitoring very closely.”
According to AccuWeather, Milton could bring dangerous storm surge, spin-up tornadoes, and even power outages, creating a high risk to life and property in Tampa, Fort Myers, other Gulf Coast cities, and parts of central Florida. is warning.
On Friday, forecasters were particularly concerned about heavy rain from this system.
As the storm makes landfall and moves northeast, expect 8 to 12 inches of rainfall with an AccuWeather Local StormMax of 30 inches.
Smerbeck said central and southern Florida will likely face “tornado risk” as the storm moves north, with winds of 40 to 60 mph possible in southern Georgia and South Carolina. He said there is. “So this could hinder recovery efforts to get people back on track,” he said after Helen’s incident.
Tropical Storm Milton Spaghetti Model
Illustrations include a variety of predictive tools and models, and not all are created equal. The Hurricane Center uses only the top four or five best-performing models to make predictions.
Hurricane Kirk expands to hit the US East Coast
Kirk was located far out in the Atlantic Ocean, but its swell spread westward from Saturday night into Sunday, extending into the U.S. East Coast, Atlantic Canada, the Bahamas Islands and into the Azores by Monday, the hurricane center said Saturday. It was announced on . The swells are likely to cause life-threatening wave and rip current conditions, the NHC said.
Hurricane Kirk tracker
hurricane kirk spaghetti model
Illustrations include a variety of predictive tools and models, and not all are created equal. The Hurricane Center uses only the top four or five best-performing models to make predictions.
If the path tracker and spaghetti model are not visible on your screen, you can view them here.
Hurricane Leslie’s path
Leslie is located in the tropical eastern Atlantic Ocean and is not expected to impact land, the center said Saturday.
hurricane leslie spaghetti model
Illustrations include a variety of predictive tools and models, and not all are created equal. The Hurricane Center uses only the top four or five best-performing models to make predictions.
If the path tracker and spaghetti model are not visible on your screen, you can view them here.
(This story has been updated to add new information and correct spelling/typo errors.)
Contributed by William Hatfield, Ana Goni-Lessan, Kim Luciani, Kimberly Miller, USA TODAY Network. Doyle Rice, USA TODAY.
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