Hurricane Milton made landfall near Siesta Key in Sarasota County, Florida at about 830pm CT on Wednesday. At the time, the storm was packing maximum sustained winds of 120mph. 

Hurricane Milton became a Category 5 hurricane at 11am CDT on Monday. The storm continued to intensify afterward, with Hurricane Hunter Aircraft indicating 175 mph maximum sustained winds by 1pm later that day. Its intensification rate has only been surpassed by Wilma (2005) and Felix (2007).

Milton maintained its strength through Wednesday morning before some gradual weakening into the afternoon hours. The system prompted a massive preparation and evacuation response across Florida given the major storm status and ongoing recovery efforts from Hurricane Helene just weeks ago. The storm never posed a significant threat to Louisiana. However, seas were elevated through Wednesday.

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