Hurricane Milton continues to barrel toward Florida's west coast ahead of its anticipated mid-week landfall . While meteorologists predict the Sunshine State could see 5–10 inches of rain, the Buckeye State likely won't get a drop of it.
Milton's path is unlike Hurricane Helene 's, whose remnants drifted north toward Ohio less than two weeks ago and dumped rain, damaged trees and caused widespread power outages across the state .
This time, things aren't looking so wet for Ohio with the latest hurricane forecast, at least for the foreseeable future.
In a seven-day forecast shared Tuesday morning on X, the National Weather Service office in Wilmington, which covers Central and Southwest Ohio, calls for an "extended period of dry conditions" through mid-October.
The NWS office in Cleveland, which covers Northern Ohio, concurs. A forecast posted by its official X account sees sunny skies through the rest of the week.
Here's what we know about Hurricane Milton as of Monday.
Milton strengthens into Category 5 Hurricane
Hurricane Milton, which formed over the weekend in the Gulf of Mexico, strengthened to a powerful Category 5 storm Monday morning . Though still dangerous, Milton is now a Category 4 storm, per AP .
With winds of 125 mph rolling through the Gulf as it heads for Florida, just weeks after Helene devastated the southeastern U.S., hurricane watches and warnings from the National Hurricane Center have been issued across the state, with some areas potentially seeing life-threatening storm surge, flood-inducing rain and damaging winds.
Milton is expected to maintain its intensity for the coming days, according to USA TODAY. While some weakening is expected before the system reaches the coast, Milton "is still likely to be a large and powerful hurricane at landfall in Florida," hurricane center specialist Jack Beven said.
Hurricane Milton to hit Helene-battered Florida
Hurricane Milton was located about 745 miles west-southwest of Tampa early Monday, moving east-southeast at 8 mph. According to USA TODAY, many Florida counties are under evacuation, with most falling under Gov. Ron DeSantis' state of emergency. A hurricane warning was also issued by Mexico for the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula from Celestun to Rio Lagartos.
Some areas of Florida could see 5–10 inches of rain, with some isolated communities seeing up to 15. A storm surge of 8–12 feet is also possible for Tampa and nearby coastal areas.
Hurricane Milton path
Hurricane Milton spaghetti models
Weather forecast for Ohio, per NWS
While Hurricane Milton churns through the Gulf of Mexico and then into the Atlantic, its effects on Ohio's weather appear negligible. Here's the latest NWS forecast for Central Ohio.
Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 71. Calm wind becoming northwest 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon.
Tuesday night: Clear, with a low around 43. West wind 3 to 6 mph.
Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 73. Calm wind becoming northwest 5 to 8 mph in the afternoon.
Wednesday night: Clear, with a low around 44. Northwest wind around 5 mph, becoming calm in the evening.
Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 69. Calm wind becoming northeast around 6 mph in the afternoon.
Thursday night: Clear, with a low around 41.
Friday: Sunny, with a high near 74.
Friday night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 53.
Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 76.
Saturday night: Mostly clear, with a low around 54.
Sunday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 76.
Sunday night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 46.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Milton will make landfall soon. Could Category 4 hurricane affect Ohio weather?
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