Hurricane Milton was continuing to strengthen in the Gulf of Mexico and was forecast to become a major hurricane later Monday as it inched toward a midweek landfall along the west coast of Florida, where residents are still reeling from the impacts of Hurricane Helene,

Milton increased to a Category 2 hurricane early Monday as Florida gears up for what could be its biggest evacuation in seven years as the storm heads toward major population centers including Tampa and Orlando.

At 5 a.m. Monday, the new forecast track calls for Hurricane Milton to reach the Florida west coast between 60 to 72 hours, making landfall between Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning.