Florida hit with rain, tornadoes and tropical storm-force winds ahead of Milton's arrival

Hurricane Milton hurledrain, tornadoes and tropical storm-force winds at the U.S. coast on Wednesdayas timeran out for Florida residents to evacuate from thepotentially catastrophic path of the storm.

Milton's centrespread ashore Wednesday night, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center, puttingthe entire Tampa Bay region and points south were at grave risk. Tropical storm-force windsbegan lashing the coast Wednesday afternoon.

Earlier, officials issued dire warnings to flee or face grim odds of survival.

"This is it, folks," said Cathie Perkins, emergency management director in Pinellas County, which sits on the peninsula that forms Tampa Bay. "Those of you who were punched during Hurricane Helene, this is going to be a knockout. You need to get out, and you need to get out now."

By late afternoon, some officials said the time had passed for such efforts.By the evening, some counties announced they has suspended emergency services.

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"Unless you really have a good reason to leave at this point, we suggest you just hunker down," Polk County Emergency Management director Paul Womble said in a public update.

Milton, which has fluctuated in intensity as it approaches Florida, was a Category 3 hurricane Wednesday evening. It was expected to remain a hurricane after hitting land and plowing across the state, including the heavily populated Orlando area, through Thursday.

Tampa Bay, near the top of a long stretch of coastline that could be in the bull's eye, has not taken a direct hit from a major hurricane in more than a century.

"That doesn't mean that it couldn't happen," said Luisa Meshekoff, who nevertheless was staying put with her partner and eight cats in their home, a brick warehouse in a mandatory evacuation zone in Tampa's Channel District. The couple considered leaving, but felt bringing the cats to a shelter wasn't an option, and they worried that getting stuck on the roads could be dangerous.

"I think if you have water and batteries, everything's OK," Meshekoff said. "I could be singing a different tune by twoin the morning."

Milton threatened communities still reeling two weeks after Hurricane Helene flooded streets and homes in western Florida and left at least 230 people dead across the South. In many places along the coast, municipalities raced to collect and dispose of debris before Milton's winds and storm surge could toss it around and compound any damage.

With the storm weaker but growing in size, the surge was projected to reach as high as 2.7 metres in Tampa Bay.

'People need to get to their safe place'

The famous Sunshine Skyway Bridge, which spans the mouth of Tampa Bay, closed at around midday. Other major bridges also closed.

WATCH |Milton's size and scope, seen from space:

NASA releases new images of Hurricane Milton from above

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NASA released new video recorded from the International Space Station on Wednesday showing Hurricane Milton as it swirled toward Florida on Wednesday. Astronaut Matthew Dominick posted the video on social media, saying the storm looked bigger but less symmetric than a day earlier.

"Yesterday, I said the clock was ticking. Today, I'm saying the alarm bell is really going off. People need to get to their safe place," said Ken Graham, director of the U.S. National Weather Service.

At a news conference in Tallahassee, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis described deployment of a wide range of resources, including 9,000 National Guard members from Florida and other states;over 50,000 power line workers from as far away as California; and highway patrol cars with sirens to escort gasoline tankers to replenish supplies so people could fill up their tanks before evacuating.

"Unfortunately, there will be fatalities. I don't think there's any way around that," DeSantis said.

As of Wednesday evening, Milton was centred about 30 kilometres west-southwest of Sarasotaand had maximum sustained winds of 195 km/h, the hurricane centre reported. It was moving northeast at 28km/h,slowing slightly from earlier in the day.

Heavy rain and tornadoes lashed parts of southern Florida starting Wednesday morning, with conditions deteriorating throughout the day. Fifteento 31 centimetresof rain, with up to 46 centimetresin some places, was expected well inland, bringing the risk of catastrophic flooding.

One twister touched down Wednesday morning in the lightly populated Everglades and crossed Interstate 75. Another apparent tornado touched down in Fort Myers, snapping tree limbs and tearing a gas station's canopy to shreds.

Authorities have issued mandatory evacuation orders across 15 Florida counties with a total population of about 7.2 million people. Officials warned that anyone staying behind must fend for themselves, because first responders were not expected to risk their lives attempting rescues at the height of the storm.

WATCH | Beekeepers fear further losses with arrival of Milton:

Florida beekeeping couple worry about their hives as Milton looms

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Matthew and Allison Davis of St. Petersburg, Fla., are among the many Tampa Bay-area residents under a mandatory evacuation order ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Milton. The couple, who are beekeepers, say they've taken steps to protect their hives and are hoping for the best after losing millions of bees in the last major storm, Helene.

'A long road ahead of us'

St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch told residents to expect long power outages and the possible shutdown of the sewer system.

In Charlotte Harbor, Fla., about 160 kilometressouth of Tampa, clouds swirled and winds gusted as Josh Parks packed his Kia sedan with clothes and other belongings. Two weeks ago, Helene's surge brought about 1.5 metresof water to the neighbourhood, and its streets remain filled with waterlogged furniture, torn-out drywall and other debris.

WATCH |Why this storm has hurricane specialists worried:

Florida bracing: Why is Hurricane Milton so threatening? | About That

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Still reeling from Hurricane Helene, millions of Floridians are now preparing for the worst as Hurricane Milton barrels towards the state. Andrew Chang breaks down why Milton is set to be one of Floridas worst storms in a century.

Parks, an auto technician, planned to flee to his daughter's home inland and said his roommate already left.

"I told her to pack like you aren't coming back,"he said.

By early afternoon, airlines had cancelled about 1,900 flights.SeaWorld was closed all day Wednesday, and Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando shut down in the afternoon.

WATCH | Impacts of climate change seen faster than anticipated:

Larger, more frequent hurricanes demand better adaptation, says Tampa Bay-area mayor

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Mayor Ken Welch of St. Petersburg, Fla., says while his city has invested in adapting to the change in climate, the impacts of a warmer world are being seen more quickly than anticipated, which means building higher seawalls and stronger infrastructure.

More than 60 per centof gas stations in Tampa and St. Petersburg were out of gas Wednesday afternoon, according to GasBuddy. DeSantis said the state's overall supply was fine, and highway patrol officers were escorting tanker trucks to replenish the supply.

In the Tampa Bay area's Gulfport, Christian Burke and his mother stayed put in their three-storey concrete home overlooking the bay. Burke said his father designed thehome with a Category 5 in mind and now they're going to test it.

As a passing police vehicle blared encouragement to evacuate, Burke acknowledged that staying isn't a good idea, but said he's "not laughing at this storm one bit."

LISTEN |Long, arduous trip out of Florida, resident tells CBC:

The Current19:09Floridians flee second monster storm in weeks

Hurricane Milton is bearing down on Florida, just weeks after the destruction of Hurricane Helene. Jaina Thatch has already been evacuated. She says facing two monster storms back-to-back is unimaginable, she just hopes shell have a home to go back to.