Moment Hurricane Milton meteorologist chokes back tears on air over terrifying storm

The magnitude of Hurricane Milton has meteorologists stunned. The hurricane is tracking as a Category 4 storm with winds as fast as 145 mph. It’s anticipated to make landfall in the Tampa Bay area Wednesday, and residents have been strongly encouraged to evacuate the area.

It reached Category 5 status Monday with winds at 180 mph, though it’s slowed back down since. Meteorologists have stressed that this is a one-of-a-kind weather event that will be life threatening and devastating to the area.

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Miami’s local NBC affiliate, NBC 6 South Florida meteorologist John Morales became emotional on air when reporting on the storm. While giving an update, he had to pause to choke back tears.

“This is just an incredible, incredible, incredible hurricane,” he said.

When talking about the speed at which the storm has intensified, he had to take a minute to collect himself.

He continued: “I apologize – this is just horrific.”

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Only five hurricanes have been stronger than Milton. Hillsborough County, Florida, Sheriff Chad Chronister said Tuesday that he’s getting prepared for “catastrophic loss.”

“I’ve never seen anything like this in my 33 years of law enforcement experience,” he said.

Just two weeks ago, Hurricane Helene devastated parts of Florida. Tampa Bay was 100 miles away from the eye of Helene, and it saw record-breaking storm surges of 5 to 6 feet.

With Milton expected to pass directly over the area, the storm surge is expected to reach 10 to 15 feet.

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Chronister added: “The flooding that we experienced just two weeks ago and the storm surge — I thought that would be the most we would ever see, and I stand corrected with this storm.”

Milton is anticipated to make landfall as a Category 3 hurricane, however it will likely double in size by then.

The National Hurricane Center said Tuesday: ““Milton is still a relatively compact hurricane, but the wind field is expected to continue to grow in size as it approaches Florida. The official forecast shows the hurricane and tropical storm-force winds roughly doubling in size by the time it makes landfall.”

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