While the storm had previously weakened, the US National Hurricane Centre says Hurricane Milton is once again a Category 5 storm.
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00:00Florida is preparing for what could be one of the most destructive storms on record as
00:06Category 5 Hurricane Milton is forecast to hit the areas of Tampa and St. Petersburg.
00:13Milton brushed the shore of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula early on Tuesday, knocking down
00:19power lines, light poles and trees before making its way towards the Florida coast.
00:27Police have ordered evacuations in Lago while residents in Venice stock up on sandbags to
00:32protect their homes.
00:35President Biden has postponed his planned trips to Germany and Angola and has urged
00:40people to follow local safety instructions.
00:43If you're under evacuation orders you should evacuate now, now, now. You should have already
00:48evacuated. It's a matter of life and death and that's not hyperbole. It's a matter of
00:53life and death.
00:55The storm comes less than two weeks after Hurricane Helene devastated the region and
01:01clean-up efforts continue to clear debris before it can be swept up and hurled by Milton's
01:06powerful storm surges.