Hurricane Milton becomes Category 5 storm
(WGHP) — Hurricane Milton is churning in the southwestern Gulf of Mexico this morning, having reached Category 5 status as of 12 p.m. on Monday morning, producing 155 mph sustained winds.
Milton has been rapidly intensifying today having gone from a Category 2 to Category 5 storm over the course of Monday morning.
Its forecast track takes it across the Gulf, reaching the west coast of the Florida peninsula Wednesday evening.
Before landfall, Milton will likely enter a less favorable environment, weakening to a Category 3 storm. Storm surges are going to be a major threat to Tampa and Fort Myers.
Wind will be a major threat as far east as Orlando.
Stay with FOX8 for updates on Milton’s track and intensity.
Local Forecast
A cold front is sliding through NC today, ushering in dramatic changes to the local forecast. Today, we’ll have sunny skies with highs near 80°. That’s six degrees above normal.
Tomorrow, however, morning lows are going to dip into the mid-50s, and highs will top out in the lower-70s!
That is going to be the new pattern for the remainder of the work week.
On Wednesday, highs are going to return to the lower-70s with mostly sunny to partly cloudy skies, and then sunshine takes over again on Thursday and Friday, with highs in the upper-60s.
You will probably need a jacket during the morning commute this week, because it will become quite chilly on Friday and Saturday mornings, in the mid-40s.
Over the weekend, we’ll start to warm up again under sunny skies. Highs will return to the mid-70s Saturday, then rise to near 80° on Sunday.
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