“The time to prepare, including evacuate if told to do so, is quickly coming to an end along the Florida west coast,” says the National Hurricane Center.

An 11 a.m. advisory from the NHC shows that the Tampa Bay region is still well within the path of Hurricane Milton, which is expected to make landfall as a major hurricane (a category 3 or 4) at around midnight tonight.

“We would like to emphasize that Milton’s exact landfall location is not possible to predict even at this time, particularly if the hurricane wobbles during the day and into this evening,” say forecasters with the NHC. “Even at 12-24 hours, NHC’s track forecasts can be off by an average of 20-30 nautical miles.”

Since the exact landfall area is still unknown, Milton’s storm surge across Tampa Bay “may vary widely, and there will likely be a noticeable gradient of surge heights to the north of the landfall location.”

Forecasters are still predicting 8-12 feet of surge in some areas.

Damaging hurricane-force winds and heavy rainfall are also expected, and will extend well outside the forecast cone. “Preparations to protect life and property, including being ready for long-duration power outages, should be rushed to completion,” warns the NHC.

As of now, Milton is a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 145 mph, moving quickly toward the northeast at 17 mph. The storm is currently located roughly 190 mile southwest of Tampa, and is expected to “remain at hurricane strength” when it barrels across the state of Florida through Thursday,” added the NHC.

Subscribe to Creative Loafing newsletters.