Valerie Jackson loads up an SUV with sandbags ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Milton

Hurricane Milton revs back up to Category 5 storm

LIVE MAP: Track the path of Hurricane Milton

MIAMI — Hurricane Milton is again a Category 5 storm as it barrels toward the Florida coastline, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said Tuesday afternoon.

Milton had previously weakened to a Category 4 storm, but its wind speeds have increased once again past the Category 5 threshold. The storm, located about 480 miles (775 kilometers) from Tampa as of about 5 p.m. EDT, has sustained wind speeds of 165 mph (270 kph), the hurricane center said.

READ MORE: Here’s what you should know about Hurricane Milton ahead of landfall in Florida

The hurricane center also extended a storm surge and hurricane warnings on Florida and Georgia’s east coasts.

View of Hurricane Milton from space

A view through the Dragon Endeavour window shows Hurricane Milton from space, Oct. 8, 2024, in this screengrab from a video obtained by Reuters. NASA/Matthew Dominick/Handout via REUTERS

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