Welcome to the news hour.

Florida is racing to prepare for Hurricane Milton, a storm that could be one of the worst to ever hit the state.

Milton rapidly intensified over unusually warm waters in the Gulf of Mexico.

It's now a category 5 storm and is expected to barrel into the Tampa Bay Area late

Wednesday, less than two weeks after Hurricane Helene hit the southeast.

William Bringham starts our coverage.

Today, residents of Western Florida filled cars with gas, stocked up on supplies, and loaded sandbags ahead of what

could be a direct hit by a major hurricane.

Honestly, when this one is kind of one that we're like a little worried about just

because of how it's coming and the way it's coming is coming straight

towards us so we're just trying to brace out for much as we can.

As the day we're on even stores nearly a hundred miles inland began to run out of supplies.

Governor Ron Desantis implored Floridians to be ready for the worst case scenario.

We urge you to execute your plan now.

Let's prepare for the worst and let's pray that we get a weakening

and hope for the least amount of damage is possible, but we must be prepared for a major,

major impact to the west coast of Florida.

Milton is expected to lash the Tampa Bay Area by Thursday morning with a catastrophic storm surge of up to 15 feet, torrents of rain and fierce winds.

It would be the first major hurricane to directly hit the area in more than a century.

Last night, Tampa's mayor, Jane Kaster, gave a dire warning to those who have been ordered to evacuate.

I can say without any dramatization whatsoever if you choose to stay in one of those evacuation

areas you're going to die.

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