Milton strengthening rapidly, could hit Florida as major hurricane midweek

Tropical Storm Milton is quickly intensifying into a possible powerful hurricane as it heads toward Florida's west coast where forecasters predict it will make landfall next week.

Milton is predicted to become a hurricane by Sunday night and either reach or approach major hurricane strength by Monday night before arriving in coastal Florida midweek, the National Hurricane Center said.

As of 11 a.m. ET on Sunday, Milton was centered about 300 miles west-northwest of Progreso, Mexico, and about 835 miles west-southwest of Tampa, Florida. It had maximum sustained winds of 65 mph — a jump from the 60 mph winds recorded earlier Sunday morning — and was inching north-northeast at 5 mph.

"Milton is moving slowly but is expected to strengthen rapidly," the hurricane center said. "There is increasing confidence that a powerful hurricane with life-threatening hazards will be affecting portions of the Florida west coast around the middle of this week."

A major hurricane is defined as a Category 3 storm or larger with maximum sustained winds of at least 111 miles per hour.  The latest forecasts Sunday morning suggested Milton would make landfall with 120 mph winds.

Milton is forecast to move across the Gulf of Mexico and approach the western coast of the Florida peninsula by the middle of the week, the hurricane center said.

The forecast comes a little more than a week after Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida and across the Southeast, killing at least 229 people in six states and causing immense destruction.

Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an emergency order on Saturday declaring a state of emergency in 35 Florida counties in preparation for possible landfall by Milton.

On Sunday, DeSantis said that while it remains to be seen just where Milton will strike, it's clear that Florida is going to be hit hard — "I don't think there's any scenario where we don't have major impacts at this point."

"You have time to prepare — all day today, all day Monday, probably all day Tuesday to be sure your hurricane preparedness plan is in place," the governor said. "Know your evacuation zone — there will be mandatory and voluntary evacuations."

The Mexican government late on Saturday issued a tropical storm watch for the Yucatan Peninsula from Celestun to Cancun. Hurricane and storm surge watches would likely be required for parts of Florida late Sunday, the hurricane center said.

In a news release Saturday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency said Milton could bring "storm surge and heavy rainfall to areas recovering from hurricanes Helene and Debby and affect areas far from the coast."

FEMA said it already had hundreds of staff in Florida assisting with Helene recovery who will also help prepare for Milton's potential arrival.

Heavy rain is possible in the region starting Sunday into Monday, the hurricane center said, with more rain and heavy winds most likely arriving later on Tuesday through Wednesday night.

The hurricane center said rainfall totals of 5 to 12 inches are possible across the Florida Peninsula and the Florida Keys from Milton.

Forecasters expected Milton to dump between 5 and 8 inches of rain on portions of the Florida peninsula and the Florida Keys through Wednesday night, and they said up to 12 inches of rainfall could accumulate in certain areas. The hurricane center warned of flooding risks along with heavy rainfall.

Residents in the area should ensure they have a hurricane plan in place, the hurricane center said, and follow the advice of local officials and check back for forecast updates.