Hurricane Milton Update for Wednesday Morning!

Milton -- which has been fluctuating between Cat-4 and Cat-5 status the last two days is currently an extremely strong Cat-4 Hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 155 mph and is moving to the Northeast at 16 mph. Milton has begun to encounter some upper-level wind shear which will weaken this system, but ever so slightly. Milton will only drop to a lower Cat-4 Cyclone (130 mph winds) when it makes landfall this evening just South of St. Pete near Sarasota close to 11p. Although Milton has picked-up forward speed, this system may slowdown slightly this afternoon. The center of this destructive Hurricane will take 12-hoursto cross the state between landfall at Sarasota at 11p this evening to when it moves over the Atlantic just South of Cape Canaveral near Satellite Beach on Thursday around 11a. The bad news is that Milton will retain its Hurricane strength winds during its entire trek though Central Florida. Milton is also expected to expand size, eventually covering most of Florida by Thursday morning. Tropical Storm winds will be possible well beyond its center. I've included the latest images, including Visible Satellite, Enhanced Satellite, the National Hurricane Center's latest data on Milton along with an updated and more detailed forecast path and a few of the Weather Advisories which have been posted for the state. @JerrySteffen @NBCPalmSprings