Milton regained strength Tuesday and was upgraded again to a Category 5 hurricane on its path toward Florida, threatening to engulf the populous Tampa Bay region with towering storm surges.
Milton intensified quickly Monday, then weakened slightly before being upgraded again. It had maximum sustained winds of 165 mph, the National Hurricane Center said.
Milton's center could come ashore Wednesday night in the Tampa Bay area, which has a population of more than 3.3 million people. Evacuations had been ordered or urged around the region.
Thousands of people streamed out of the Tampa Bay region Tuesday ahead of what could be a once-in-a-century direct hit from Milton, as crews worked furiously to prevent furniture, appliances and other waterlogged wreckage from Florida's last big storm from becoming deadly projectiles in this one.
The preparations marked the last chance for millions of residents of the Tampa metro area to prepare for killer storm surges, ferocious winds and possible tornadoes in a place that has narrowly avoided a head-on blow from a major storm for generations.
"Today's the last day to get ready," said Craig Fugate, a former FEMA director who previously ran the state's emergency operation division. "This is bringing everything."
Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state deployed over 300 dump trucks that had removed 1,300 loads of debris left behind by Hurricane Helene by Tuesday afternoon. In Clearwater Beach, Nick Szabo spent a second long day hauling away 3-foot piles of soggy mattresses, couches and drywall after being hired by a local resident eager to help clear the roads and unwilling to wait for overwhelmed city contractors.
"All this crap is going to be missiles," he said. "It's like a spear coming at you."
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