Hurricane Milton continues to gain strength Tuesday as it passes Cancun, sustaining winds of up to 155 miles per hour on its collision course with Florida.
The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) described the Category 5 storm as “potentially catastrophic” for Florida’s western coastal communities, and trackers predicted Milton will move northeast before turning sharply east toward Tampa.
Tampa Bay and surrounding communities are bracing for storm surges of up to 15 feet that will cause inland flooding as residents try to flee amid traffic congestion.
In all Florida counties caught in Milton’s northeast path, rainfall is expected to reach 5 to 10 inches, with some regions likely to face up to 15 inches.
These heavy rains are expected to cause flash flooding, slow and more persistent “regional” flooding, saturated stormwater drainage systems and “moderate to major river flooding,” according to the World Meteorological Organization.
Weather data visualization company Ventusky is actively synthesizing weather data to plot and predict the path of Hurricane Milton through its tracker, shown below.
Milton surprised meteorologists with its ability to evolve in less than three days from a tropical depression or cyclone with wind speeds of no more than 38 mph to a potentially record-breaking Category 5 hurricane.
NHC officials said there are signs the hurricane could weaken as it transits the Gulf of Mexico toward Florida, downgrading to a still severe Category 3 before making landfall on Wednesday.
“Although fluctuations in intensity are expected, Milton is forecast to remain an extremely dangerous hurricane until it makes landfall in Florida,” the NHC warned.
Cities along Florida’s west coast, from Spring Hill in the north to Cape Coral in the south, including Tampa, St. Petersburg and Venice, are prepared to face the worst of Hurricane Milton’s impact as it moves through the state on Wednesday.
The worst of the storm’s impact, according to Ventusky’s model, will continue into the early morning hours of Thursday, with the eye of the storm moving across central Florida before passing its east coast sometime after 5 a.m. Eastern time.
Tampa is especially vulnerable to the destructive impacts of hurricanes, meaning Milton could be catastrophic, according to Dr. Steven Godby, a natural hazards expert at Nottingham Trent University’s School of Animal, Rural and Environmental Sciences.
Dr. Godby said this is due to a combination of the low waters near Tampa Bay and its dense population and infrastructure.
“Tampa has long been considered the most vulnerable metropolitan area in the United States to storm surge flooding,” Dr. Godby told DailyMail.com.
‘Direct hurricanes on Florida’s west coast are rare, but much of it is in low-lying areas and the relatively shallow waters off the coast make it vulnerable to large storm surges.
‘The last major hurricane (category 3 on the Saffir-Simpson scale) to affect the Tampa Bay region made landfall on October 25, 1921, causing a storm surge of 3 to 3.5 meters and winds of 185 km /h that caused losses that today would be 180 million dollars.
‘With Hurricane Milton approaching Tampa, it is worth noting that the population at the time was around 160,000 and has now increased to more than three million, many of whom live on soils less than three meters above ground. sea.
“Large numbers of homes, schools, government buildings and critical infrastructure are at risk of flooding and wind damage.”
Florida residents seeking assistance are urged to call the State Assistance Information Line (SAIL) at 1-800-342-3557 and/or the FEMA Helpline at 1-800-621-3362.