Milton hurricane tracker: Storm 'explodes' into Category 5 as experts warn Florida could face 'once-in-a-lifetime' storm

It's critical to have a plan and emergency supplies in place before Hurricane Milton hits, and heeding evacuation warnings could be a life-saving decision, emergency officials said Monday.

According to Jaime Hernandez, the director of emergency management in Hollywood, Florida, people should do three important things: make a plan, have an emergency kit and stay informed.

“If they have issued an evacuation order, I ask you, I implore you, to evacuate.”

Hurricane Milton, which became a Category 5 hurricane within hours on Monday, is expected to remain “extremely dangerous” as it makes landfall in Florida on Wednesday.

“Although fluctuations in intensity are expected, Milton is expected to remain an extremely dangerous hurricane if it makes landfall in Florida,” the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said in a statement.

Florida authorities provide free Uber rides to and from storm shelters for all individuals within counties subject to an evacuation order.

The state's Division of Emergency Management said Monday evening that people who meet those criteria can now activate the offer by adding the “MILTONRELIEF” action in the Uber app.

The Clearwater Fire & Rescue Department wrote on Facebook Monday that access to the barrier islands, including Clearwater Beach, was limited to residents, business owners, employees working on the beach, rideshare drivers and workers moving debris.

All entrances will be closed at the same time on Tuesday.

“Take the next 24 hours to make your preparations. If you live in an evacuation zone, you must evacuate,” the department said.

Boston TV meteorologist Eric Fischer says that Milton is in the process of expanding his eyewall to create a larger eye, which would have both helpful and harmful effects for the people in his path.

That process could cause Milton to lose intensity, Fisher explained, but could also lead to an increase in storm surge flooding.

The mayor of Tampa has issued a stark warning to residents, declaring that “if you stay in an evacuation zone you will die.”

That's just one of many incredibly blunt assessments of Hurricane Milton we're now hearing from officials and experts, according to Spectrum News producer John Park.

“This is nothing short of astronomical. I have no words to describe meteorologically the small eye and intensity of the storm,” said local weatherman Noah Bergren.

He said the eye of the hurricane was “tiny” at just 3.7 miles (6.1 kilometers) wide and the storm was approaching “the mathematical limit of what Earth's atmosphere can produce over this ocean water.”