Hurricane Milton tracker: Storm weakens slightly to Category 4; still 'extremely dangerous'

Hurricane Milton has weakened slightly from a Category 5 storm to a Category 4 storm as of Tuesday morning, although forecasters warn the storm will remain "an extremely dangerous hurricane" through landfall in Florida.

Milton intensified from a Category 2 hurricane into a Category 5 storm within hours Monday, generating winds of 180 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center. On Tuesday morning, the storm was located about 560 miles southwest of Tampa, Florida, with maximum sustained winds near 155 mph with higher gusts. Milton is expected to turn toward the east-northeast and northeast Tuesday and Wednesday, according to the hurricane center.

Meteorologists said the storm is expected to move near or just north of the Yucatan Peninsula Tuesday before crossing the eastern Gulf of Mexico and nearing the west coast of Florida by Wednesday. Milton is forecast to make landfall in Florida Wednesday night, according to the NHC.

"Milton poses an extremely serious threat to Florida and residents are urged to follow the orders of local officials," the hurricane center said in an advisory Tuesday morning .

Rainfall amounts of 5 to 12 inches, with localized totals up to 18 inches, are expected across central to northern portions of the Florida Peninsula through Thursday, the NHC said Tuesday morning. Milton is also forecast to bring rainfall totals of 2 to 4 inches across the Florida Keys through Thursday.

Even ahead of Milton's arrival, a potentially deadly storm surge of 10-15 feet is possible for Tampa and other coastal communities Tuesday through Wednesday night, according to the NHC.

Hurricane Milton tracker: Hurricane Milton's storm surge could be a major problem for Tampa Bay

Hurricane Milton tracker

Hurricane Milton spaghetti models

Illustrations include an array of forecast tools and models, and not all are created equal. The hurricane center uses only the top four or five highest-performing models to help make its forecasts.

Contributing: John Bacon, Christopher Cann, Dinah Voyles Pulver, Jorge L. Ortiz and Michael Loria

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Hurricane Milton tracker: Storm weakens slightly to Category 4; still 'extremely dangerous'