When and where will the storm hit Florida?

“Most people have evacuated, but there is still some time this morning for the last people who have been hesitant to evacuate,” Rick Davis, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Tampa, told USA TODAY.

Where will it land?

Davis said Hurricane Milton is expected to make landfall in the Manatee Couty/Sarasota County area on the west coast of Central Florida, more or less 50 miles north or south, said Davis, who also advised people not to focus on where it might make landfall.

“We advise people not to focus exactly on the center because as the system makes landfall, the eye gets bigger and the wind field gets bigger,” Davis said. “Even if you are not directly on the path, the impact at the landing point will be felt far and wide.”

Hurricane Milton Tracker

Hurricane Milton Spaghetti Models

The illustrations span a range of forecasting tools and models, and not all are created equal. The hurricane center only uses the four or five best-performing models in its forecasts.