Hurricane Milton: Evacuation orders increase as storm reaches Category 5

Officials in Florida are urging residents to evacuate now as Hurricane Milton strengthens and sets its sights on the state's west coast.

Hours before the storm strengthened into a Category 5 hurricane on Monday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned residents to take evacuation orders seriously.

“Time is running out very, very soon,” he said at a news conference.

“Please, if you are in the Tampa Bay area, you must evacuate,” Kevin Guthrie, executive director of Florida Emergency Management, urged at the news conference. “Drowning deaths due to storm surge are 100% preventable by walking away.”

More than 50 counties along Florida's west coast are currently under a state of emergency and several are under evacuation orders, including Charlotte, Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas and Sarasota. All evacuation orders are listed on the Florida Division of Emergency Management website.

The storm is expected to weaken but will still be a Category 3 major hurricane when it hits Florida late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning.

“If you live in a storm surge evacuation zone and are asked by your local officials to leave the area, please do so,” Michael Brennan, director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Hurricane Center, told ABC News Live on Sunday . “You don’t have to drive hundreds of miles to get to a safe place, often it’s just dozens of miles to get inland, out of that evacuation zone, to a shelter, to a friend or a loved one’s home.”

Brennan also urged Floridians to prepare an emergency kit containing several days of non-perishable food, water, medication and batteries.

Before landing Monday, President Joe Biden approved an emergency declaration for the state so federal aid can begin to supplement local efforts.

Flooding is expected and storm surges pose a significant threat.

A record-breaking storm surge of 8 to 12 feet is expected in the Tampa Bay region as Floridians continue to clean up from the 6 to 8 foot storm surge just caused by Hurricane Helene.

As Milton approaches, Tampa Airport announced it would suspend operations at 9 a.m. Tuesday and remain closed “until any post-storm damage can be assessed,” airport officials said. St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport also announced it would close Tuesday and remain closed Wednesday and Thursday.

The University of Florida announced it would cancel classes on Wednesday and Thursday but plans to reopen Friday morning.