FL Division of Emergency Management (@FLSERT) October 7, 2024 A Hurricane Warning and a Storm Surge Warning are up for much of both the west and east coasts of Florida, as Hurricane Milton races across the record-warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico toward an expected Wednesday night or early Thursday morning landfall.

Hurricane Milton began its turn toward Florida on Tuesday still a powerful Category 4 hurricane with a forecast landfall near Tampa Bay and projected path that will cut through Central Florida.

Milton is threatening a storm surge as high as 12 feet in Tampa Bay less than two weeks after a catastrophic Hurricane Helene swamped the coastline.

Hurricane Milton, which re-strengthened to a Category 5 hurricane Tuesday afternoon, is taking aim at Florida's west coast. Landfall is expected late Wednesday night as a Category 3 hurricane.Milton is closing in as Floridians are still recovering from the devastation unleashed by Hurricane Helene.

Less than two weeks after the devastation brought by Helene, southern U.S. states are bracing for another powerful storm. Here’s how to track its path in real time. Update Tuesday, October 8, 5:10 p.m.