MIAMI (AP) - The Latest on Hurricane Michael (all times local):

Hurricane Michael continues to gain strength as it moves through the southern Gulf of Mexico.

By 5 a.m. Tuesday, Michael's top sustained winds had risen some to 90 mph (144 kph) as it headed north at 12 mph (19 kph).

The Category 1 storm was centered about 390 miles (627 kilometers) south of Apalachicola and 420 miles (675 kilometers) south of Panama City, Florida. Hurricane-force winds extended outward up to 35 miles (56 kilometers) from the core and tropical-storm-force winds out 175 miles (280 kilometers). Hurricane-force winds extended outward up to 40 miles (64 kilometers) from the core and tropical-storm-force winds out 195 miles (313.81 kilometers).

Forecasters say the center of Michael will continue to move over the southern Gulf of Mexico Tuesday morning. The storm will then move across the eastern Gulf of Mexico later Tuesday into the night.

The center is then expected to move inland over the Florida Panhandle or Florida Big Bend area on Wednesday, and then move northeastward across the southeastern United States Wednesday night and Thursday.

Michael has gained new strength over warm tropical waters and is forecast to quickly intensify into a major hurricane before a midweek landfall on Florida's Gulf Coast

In the Florida Panhandle and surrounding areas, people are frantically boarding up homes, filling sandbags and planning for evacuation routes away from the storm's projected strike zone.

A hurricane hunter plane that bounced into the swirling eye of Michael off the western tip of Cuba late Monday found wind speeds were rising even as forecasters warned the storm could reach major hurricane status with winds topping 111 mph (179 kph) by Tuesday night.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott calls it a "monstrous hurricane" and is warning of a potentially devastating strike sometime Wednesday.</s>Oct. 10 (UPI) -- Hurricane Michael strengthened into a Category 4 storm early Wednesday as it made a final approach to the northwestern Florida coastline before it arrives on land.

Michael will arrive as an "extremely dangerous" storm Wednesday afternoon with winds of 145 mph, the National Hurricane Center said in its 8 a.m. update Wednesday. Michael's location was about 90 miles southwest of both Panama City, Fla., and Apalachicola, Fla., the NHC said. It's moving north at 13 mph.

The NHC said Michael could still grow stronger before it reaches the Florida coast.

Forecasters predicted Michael would be a major hurricane -- Category 3 or stronger -- by the time it arrived Wednesday. Overnight Tuesday, Florida Gov. Rick Scott posted a series of tweets warning residents to prepare and evacuate.

"This is your last chance to evacuate before conditions start deteriorating within the next few hours," Scott wrote. "Storm surge can occur before, during, or after the center of a storm passes through an area. I'm asking all Floridians to stay vigilant throughout tonight and tomorrow as we brace for Hurricane Michael to make landfall."

Forecasters have warned that Michael's strength could be "catastrophic" for communities in its path -- anywhere from Pensacola on the western flank of the Florida Panhandle to Tampa. They said Michael could be the strongest hurricane to hit that stretch of coastline in 13 years.

Large waves are expected from Mexico Beach to Keaton Beach, where they could reach 9 to 13 feet in height. Storm surge could reach heights of 6 to 9 feet from the Okaloosa-Walton County line to Mexico Beach and from Keaton Beach to Cedar Key. Cedar Key to Chassahowitzka could see storm surge topping out between 4 to 6 feet. The areas from Chassahowitzka to Anna Maria Island and between the Alabama-Florida border and the Okaloosa-Walton county line could see 2 to 4 feet of storm surge.

The NHC forecasts 4 to 8 inches of rain for the Panhandle, southeast Alabama and parts of southwest and central Georgia. Isolated areas could get 12 inches and life-threatening flash floods.

After reaching land, Michael is expected to travel northeast at hurricane strength as it passes over Georgia. It will weaken into a tropical storm near the Carolinas and Virginia on its way back to the Atlantic Ocean, forecasters said.</s>NASA released stunning views of Hurricane Michael from space, as the storm continues its trek toward the Florida panhandle.

On Wednesday morning, the agency's Short-term Prediction and Research Center shared a view of the Category 4 hurricane.

Cameras outside the International Space Station captured video of Michael as the storm continued churning over the Gulf of Mexico.

On Monday, NASA's Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer instrument captured Michael while still a Category 1. The instrument flies aboard NASA’s Aqua satellite.

Michael’s eye was about 90 miles southwest of Panama City, moving north at 13 mph. The storm is expected to make landfall by early afternoon.

An Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter crew reported top sustained winds up to of 145 mph with higher gusts.</s>PANAMA CITY, Fla. — Gaining frightening fury overnight, Hurricane Michael closed in Wednesday on the Florida Panhandle with potentially catastrophic winds of 145 mph, the most powerful storm on record ever to menace the stretch of fishing towns, military bases and spring-break beaches.

With more than 375,000 people up and down the Gulf Coast warned to clear out, the hurricane's leading edge began lashing the white-sand shoreline with tropical storm-force winds, rain and rising seas before daybreak, hours before Michael's center was expected to blow ashore.

"I really fear for what things are going to look like there tomorrow at this time," Colorado State University hurricane expert Phil Klotzbach said in an email.

The unexpected brute quickly sprang from a weekend tropical depression, reaching Category 4 early Wednesday as it drew energy from the Gulf of Mexico's warm waters, an unseasonably high 84 degrees. Less than a day earlier, Michael was a Category 2.

"The time to evacuate has come and gone ... SEEK REFUGE IMMEDIATELY," Florida Gov. Rick Scott tweeted, while the sheriff in Panama City's Bay County issued a shelter-in-place order before dawn.

In St. Marks, John Hargan and his family gathered up their pets and evacuated to a raised building constructed to withstand a Category 5 after water from the St. Marks River began surrounding their home. His 11-year-old son, Jayden, carried one of the family's dogs in a laundry basket in one arm and held a skateboard in the other as he waded through calf-high water.

Hargan, a bartender at a riverfront restaurant, feared he would lose his home and his job to the storm.

"We basically just walked away from everything and said goodbye to it," he said, tears welling up. "I'm freakin' scared I'm going to lose everything I own, man."

At 11:30 a.m. EDT, Michael was centered was about 50 miles from Panama City and Apalachicola, moving fast at 14 mph. It had maximum sustained winds of 150 mph, and the Apalachicola airport reported a gust of 72 mph.

Rainfall could reach up to a foot (30 centimeters), and the life-threatening storm surge could swell to 14 feet (4 meters).

The storm appeared to be so powerful that it is expected to remain a hurricane as it moves over Georgia early Thursday. Forecasters said it will unleash damaging wind and rain all the way into the Carolinas, still recovering from Hurricane Florence's epic flooding.

"We are in new territory," National Hurricane Center Meteorologist Dennis Feltgen wrote on Facebook. "The historical record, going back to 1851, finds no Category 4 hurricane ever hitting the Florida panhandle."

With Election Day less than a month away, the crisis was seen as a test of leadership for Scott, a Republican running for the Senate, and Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, the Democratic nominee for governor. Just as Northern politicians are judged on how they handle snowstorms, their Southern counterparts are watched closely for how they deal with hurricanes.

Several hours ahead of landfall, seawater was already lapping over the docks at Massalina Bayou near downtown Panama City, and knee-deep water was rising against buildings in St. Marks, which sits on an inlet south of Tallahassee.

Huge waves pounded the white sands of Panama City Beach, shooting frothy water all the way to the base of wooden stairs that lead to the beach.

More than 5,000 evacuees sought shelter in the capital city, which is about 25 miles from the coast but is covered by live oak and pine trees that can fall and cause power outages even in smaller storms.

Only a skeleton staff remained at Tyndall Air Force Base, situated on a peninsula just south of Panama City. The home of the 325th Fighter Wing and some 600 military families appeared squarely targeted for the worst of the storm's fury, and leaders declared HURCON 1 status, ordering out all but essential personnel.

The base's aircraft, which include F-22 Raptors, were flown hundreds of miles away as a precaution.

Evacuations spanned 22 counties from the Florida Panhandle into north-central Florida. But civilians don't have to follow orders, and authorities feared many failed to heed their warnings to get out.

"We've told those who stayed to have their life jackets on when the storm comes," Tress Dameron, Franklin County emergency management coordinator, told The News Herald in Panama City.

Meteorologists watched in real time as a new government satellite showed the hurricane's eye tightening, surrounded by lightning that lit it up "like a Christmas tree."

"I guess it's the worst-case scenario. I don't think anyone would have experienced this in the Panhandle," meteorologist Ryan Maue of weathermodels.com said. "This is going to have structure-damaging winds along the coast and hurricane-force winds inland."

The University of Georgia's Marshall Shepherd, a former president of the American Meteorological Society, called it a "life-altering event," writing on Facebook that he watched the storm's growth on satellite images with a pit in his stomach.

Associated Press writers Tamara Lush in St. Petersburg, Fla.; Freida Frisaro in Miami; Brendan Farrington in St. Marks, Fla.; Russ Bynum in Keaton Beach, Fla.; Jonathan Drew in Raleigh, North Carolina; and Seth Borenstein in Kensington, Md., contributed to this story.

Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>The U.S. National Hurricane Center on Sunday upgraded Tropical Depression Michael to a tropical storm, hours before its top sustained winds of 60 mph exceeded forecasts.

By 11 p.m. ET Sunday, the storm was located around 105 miles east-southeast of Cozumel, Mexico and moving to the north at about 5 mph. Tropical storm winds extended out 170 miles, primarily to the northeast and southeast of the storm's center. It also was about 135 miles south-southwest of the western tip of Cuba.

The storm is expected to further strengthen into a hurricane in the next couple of days as its center travels over the Yucatan Channel, crosses the Gulf of Mexico and nears the Florida Panhandle coast around Wednesday.

Forecasters advised residents along the northeastern and central U.S. Gulf Coast to monitor the storm's progress.

"While the impacts are still uncertain, our area could experience increased wind activity and heavy rainfall, which could cause localized flooding and downed trees," Tallahassee officials said in a statement.

The city of Pensacola tweeted to residents, "Be sure you have your emergency plan in place."

Florida Gov. Rick Scott on Sunday warned that a tropical storm headed for the Florida Panhandle could become a Category 2 hurricane with winds up to 100 miles per hour by the time it makes landfall around Wednesday. Scott issued an order for a state of emergency for 26 counties in the Florida Panhandle and the Big Bend area.

"This storm will be life-threatening and extremely dangerous," Scott said after receiving a briefing at the State Emergency Operations Center.

The governor warned that storm surge could affect areas of Florida not in the storm's direct path.

"If this storm hit Panama City, Tampa could still have storm surge," said Scott, referring to two Florida cities about 375 miles apart by the highway. "Every family must be prepared."

Scott also activated 500 members of the Florida National Guard ahead of the storm.

Michael is the 13th named storm of the 2018 hurricane season, according to hurricane center spokesman Dennis Feltgen.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.</s>At least eight cruise ships carrying more than 20,000 vacationers have been forced to alter course this week to avoid Hurricane Michael.

Cruise giant Carnival's 2,124-passenger Carnival Miracle on Tuesday skipped a call at Cozumel, Mexico, as it steered clear of the storm. The ship departed Tampa on Sunday on a seven-day voyage to the Western Caribbean.

Also shifting course on Tuesday was Carnival's 2,040-passenger Carnival Paradise, which is on a five-day voyage out of Tampa. The ship is sailing a reverse itinerary that will see it arrive in Cozumel on Wednesday and Grand Cayman on Thursday.

The vessels joined four others at Carnival that had been forced to reroute earlier in the week due to Michael's approach. On Monday, the Miami-based, 2,980-passenger Carnival Glory skipped a call at Grand Cayman and remained at sea to avoid the storm while the Galveston, Texas-based, 2,754-passenger Carnival Freedom dropped a call at Mahogany Bay in Honduras.

The New Orleans-based, 2,754-passenger Carnival Triumph and Miami-based, 2,764-passenger Carnival Victory are sailing reverse itineraries.

The storm also has forced Norwegian Cruise Line to alter the itinerary of one of its biggest ships, the 4,248-passenger Norwegian Getaway, and at least one Royal Caribbean vessel has seen its itineraries slightly adjusted.

Norwegian's Miami-based Getaway called Tuesday at Falmouth, Jamaica, in lieu of Roatan, Honduras. On Wednesday, it substituted a call at Grand Cayman for Costa Maya, Mexico.

On Wednesday morning, Royal Caribbean chief meteorologist James Van Fleet said in a tweet that the line's 2,350-passenger, Tampa-based Majesty of the Seas would arrive back at its home port on Thursday several hours late due to the storm.

Van Fleet also said Royal Caribbean's 1,992-passenger Grandeur of the Seas might depart Baltimore two hours early on Thursday to steer clear of the storm.

The National Hurricane Center on Wednesday said the Category 4 storm is expected to move ashore over the Florida Panhandle on Wednesday afternoon, becoming the strongest hurricane in recorded history to hit the region.

As of 8 a.m. EDT Wednesday, Michael was about 90 miles south of Panama City, Florida, and moving north at 13 mph. The hurricane had maximum sustained winds of 145 mph.</s>MIAMI (AP) — Hurricane Michael quickly intensified into a Category 2 over warm Gulf of Mexico waters Tuesday amid fears it would strike Florida on Wednesday as an even stronger hurricane. Mandatory evacuations were issued as beach dwellers rushed to board up homes just ahead of what could be a devastating hit.

A hurricane hunter plane that bounced into the swirling eye off the western tip of Cuba found wind speeds rising. By 8 a.m. Tuesday, top winds had reached 100 mph (155 kph), and it was forecast to strengthen into a “major” Category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of more than 111 mph (179 kph).

The speed of the storm barreling toward the Florida Panhandle — Michael was already north of Cuba and moving north-northwest at 12 mph (19 kph) — gave many people only hours to prepare and flee before damaging wind and rain starts whipping the coast.

“Guess what? That’s today,” National Hurricane Center Director Ken Graham said. “If they tell you to leave, you have to leave.”

Gov. Rick Scott also warned people across northwest Florida Tuesday morning that the “monstrous hurricane” was just hours away, bringing deadly risks from high winds, storm surge and heavy rains.

His opponent in Florida’s Senate race, Sen. Bill Nelson, said a “wall of water” could cause major destruction along the Panhandle. “Don’t think that you can ride this out if you’re in a low-lying area,” Nelson said on CNN.

Mandatory evacuation orders went into effect Tuesday morning for some 120,000 people in Panama City Beach and across other low-lying parts of the coast.

Forecasters said parts of Florida’s marshy, lightly populated Big Bend area could see up to 12 feet (3.7 meters) of storm surge.

Michael also could dump up to a foot (30 centimeters) of rain over some Panhandle communities before it sweeps over Alabama, Georgia, the Carolinas and Virginia Wednesday and Thursday. Forecasters said tornadoes could spin off the storm and 3 to 6 inches of rain could cause flash floods as it barrels over a corner of the country still recovering from Hurricane Florence.

Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan bluntly advised residents choosing to ride it out that first-responders won’t be able to reach them while Michael smashes into the coast.

“If you decide to stay in your home and a tree falls on your house or the storm surge catches you and you’re now calling for help, there’s no one that can respond to help you,” Morgan said at a news conference.

Michael wasn’t quite done wreaking havoc in the Caribbean on Tuesday. Forecasters warned of up to a foot (30 centimeters) of rain in western Cuba, triggering flash floods and mudslides in mountain areas, and disaster agencies in El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua reported 13 deaths as roofs collapsed and residents were carried away by swollen rivers.

In Florida, Scott declared a state of emergency for 35 counties, from the Panhandle to Tampa Bay, activated hundreds of Florida National Guard members and waived tolls to encourage evacuations. The governors of Alabama and Georgia also made emergency declarations.

With just a month to go before Election Day, Florida voters in evacuation zones also were given one more day to register to vote, once offices reopen after the storm.

Scott also told caregivers at north Florida hospitals and nursing homes to do all they can to assure the safety of the elderly and infirm. Following Hurricane Irma last year, 14 people died when a South Florida nursing home lost power and air conditioning.

“If you’re responsible for a patient, you’re responsible for the patient. Take care of them,” he said.

In the small Panhandle city of Apalachicola, Mayor Van Johnson Sr. said the 2,300 residents were frantically preparing for what could be a strike unlike any seen there in decades. Many filled sandbags and boarded up homes and lined up to buy gas and groceries before leaving town.

“We’re looking at a significant storm with significant impact, possibly greater than I’ve seen in my 59 years of life,” Johnson said of his city on the shore of Apalachicola Bay, which where about 90 percent of Florida’s oysters are harvested.

There will be no shelters open in Wakulla County, the sheriff’s office warned on Facebook, because they are rated safe only for hurricanes with top sustained winds below 111 mph (178 kph). With Michael’s winds projected to be even stronger, residents there were urged to evacuate inland.

“This storm has the potential to be a historic storm, please take heed,” the sheriff’s office said in the post.

Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, Florida’s Democratic nominee for governor, filled sandbags with residents and urged the state capital’s residents to finish emergency preparations quickly.

“There’s nothing between us and this storm but warm water, and I think that’s what terrifies us about the potential impacts,” Gillum said.</s>TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) - A fast and furious Hurricane Michael sped toward the Florida Panhandle on Tuesday night with 120 mph winds and a potential storm surge of 13 feet, giving tens of thousands of people precious little time to get out or board up.

Drawing energy from the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, the storm strengthened rapidly into a potentially devastating Category 3 and was getting much better organized after nightfall. Forecasters said Michael could be near a very dangerous Category 4 by landfall, with further strengthening expected overnight.

It was expected to blow ashore around midday Wednesday near Panama City Beach, along a lightly populated stretch of fishing villages and white-sand spring-break beaches.

While Florence took five days between the time it turned into a hurricane and the moment it rolled into the Carolinas, Michael gave Florida what amounted to two days' notice. It developed into a hurricane on Monday, and by Tuesday, more than 180,000 people were under mandatory evacuation orders.

"We don't know if it's going to wipe out our house or not," Jason McDonald, of Panama City, said as he and his wife drove north into Alabama with their two children, ages 5 and 7. "We want to get them out of the way."

Coastal residents rushed to board up their homes and stock up on bottled water and other supplies.

As of 8 p.m. EDT, Michael was 255 miles (410 kilometers) south of Panama City, speeding northward at 12 mph (19 kph). Hurricane-force winds extended outward 45 miles (75 kilometers) from its center.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott warned it was a "monstrous hurricane," and his Democratic opponent for the Senate, Sen. Bill Nelson, said a "wall of water" could cause destruction along the Panhandle.

"Don't think that you can ride this out if you're in a low-lying area," Nelson said on CNN.

But some officials were worried by what they weren't seeing — a rush of evacuees.

"I am not seeing the level of traffic on the roadways that I would expect when we've called for the evacuation of 75 percent of this county," Bay County Sheriff Tommy Ford said.

Aja Kemp, 36, planned to stay in her mobile home in Crawfordville. She worked all night stocking shelves at a big-box store that was closing later Tuesday, then got to work securing her yard.

Kemp said the bill totaled over $800 when she and her family fled Hurricane Irma's uncertain path last year.

"I just can't bring myself to spend that much money," she said. "We've got supplies to last us a week. Plenty of water. I made sure we've got clean clothes. We got everything tied down."

In the dangerously exposed coastal town of Apalachicola, population 2,500, Sally Crown planned to go home and hunker down with her two dogs.

"We've been through this before," she said. "This might be really bad and serious. But in my experience, it's always blown way out of proportion."

Mandatory evacuation orders went into effect in Panama City Beach and other low-lying areas in the storm's path. That included Pensacola Beach but not in Pensacola itself, a city of about 54,000.

Forecasters said parts of the Panhandle and Florida's marshy, lightly populated Big Bend area — the crook of Florida's elbow — could see 9 to 13 feet (2.7 to 4 meters) of storm surge.

About 20 miles (32 kilometers) in from the coast, in Tallahassee, the state capital, people rushed to fill their gas tanks and grab supplies. Many gas stations in Tallahassee had run out of fuel, including the Quick 'N' Save, which was also stripped clean of bottled water and down to about two dozen bags of ice.

Several people were taken by van from coastal Wakulla County to Tallahassee's Leon County to the north. Wakulla County's shelters are not considered reliable against storms stronger than a Category 2.

Annette Strickland, 75, arrived at a Tallahassee high school. While glad to have a safe place to ride out the storm, she wasn't happy that her home county couldn't provide shelter.

"I feel like that they should've provided something," she said. "That's just me. I don't want to be ugly."

Michael could dump up to a foot (30 centimeters) of rain over some Panhandle communities before its remnants go back out to sea by way of the mid-Atlantic states over the next few days.

Forecasters said it could bring 3 to 6 inches (7 to 14 centimeters) of rain to Georgia, the Carolinas and Virginia, triggering flash flooding in a corner of the country still recovering from Florence.

"I know people are fatigued from Florence, but don't let this storm catch you with your guard down," North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said, adding, "A number of homes have rooftop tarps that could be damaged or blown away with this wind."

While Florence wrung itself out for days and brought ruinous rains, fast-moving Michael is likely to be more about wind and storm surge.

As the storm closed in on the U.S., it caused havoc in the Caribbean.

In Cuba, it dropped more than 10 inches (27 centimeters) of rain in places, flooding fields, damaging roads, knocking out power and destroying some homes in the western province of Pinar del Rio. Cuban authorities said they evacuated about 400 people from low-lying areas.

Disaster agencies in El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua reported 13 deaths as roofs collapsed and residents were carried away by swollen rivers.</s>Oct. 10 (UPI) -- Hurricane Michael strengthened into a Category 4 storm early Wednesday as it heads toward the Florida Panhandle.

Michael will come ashore as an "extremely dangerous" storm Wednesday afternoon packing winds of 140 mph, the National Hurricane Center said its 5 a.m. update Wednesday. Life-threatening storm surge and heavy rainfall is expected along Florida's northeastern Gulf Coast.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott posted a series of tweets overnight warning residents along the coast to evacuate.

"This is your last chance to evacuate before conditions start deteriorating within the next few hours," Scott said. "Storm surge can occur before, during, or after the center of a storm passes through an area. I'm asking all Floridians to stay vigilant throughout tonight and tomorrow as we brace for Hurricane Michael to make landfall."

Michael's location was about 140 miles south-southwest of Panama City, Fla. and 130 miles southwest of Apalachicola, Fla.

Forecasters say it could bring catastrophic damage when it makes landfall.

"Michael could develop into a potentially catastrophic event for the northeastern Gulf Coast," the National Weather Service office in Tallahassee, Fla., said. Forecasters said Michael could be the strongest hurricane in 12 years to hit the stretch of coastline from Pensacola to Tampa.

Large waves are expected from Mexico Beach to Keaton Beach, where they could reach 9 to 13 feet in height. Storm surge could reach heights of 6 to 9 feet from the Okaloosa-Walton County line to Mexico Beach and from Keaton Beach to Cedar Key. Cedar Key to Chassahowitzka could see storm surge topping out between 4 to 6 feet. The areas from Chassahowitzka to Anna Maria Island and between the Alabama-Florida border and the Okaloosa-Walton county line could see 2 to 4 feet of storm surge.

"This is a life-threatening situation," the NHC said Tuesday. "Persons located within these areas should take all necessary actions to protect life and property from rising water and the potential for other dangerous conditions. Promptly follow evacuation and other instructions from local officials."

A storm surge warning was in effect from the Okaloosa-Walton County line to the Anclote River, the NHC said. A hurricane warning covered the Alabama-Florida border east to the Suwannee River.

The NHC forecasts 4 to 8 inches of rain for the Panhandle, southeast Alabama and parts of southwest and central Georgia. Isolated areas could get 12 inches with the threat of life-threatening flash floods.

Once it reaches land, Michael's track takes it northeast where it will still be at hurricane strength as it passes over Georgia. It will weaken into a tropical storm as it passes over the Carolinas and Virginia on its way back to the Atlantic Ocean.

Farther out in the Atlantic, Leslie has regained hurricane status as it meanders east. The Category 1 hurricane has maximum sustained winds of 75 mph, the NHC said in a 5 a.m. update. The storm, located 1,105 miles from Azores, is expected to strengthen slowly over the next few days.

Leslie was a subtropical storm on Sept. 23 but weakened into depression, then back into a tropical storm, before reaching hurricane strength again.

Tropical Storm Nadine is also spinning about 485 miles west-southwest of the Cabo Verde Islands, the NHC said in its 5 a.m. update Wednesday.</s>Hurricane Michael forecast: What to expect and when

ABC NEWS – Hurricane Michael — a Category 4 hurricane — churned toward the Florida Panhandle early Wednesday as the state and its neighbors braced for the impact.

The storm reached Category 4 status in the overnight hours Wednesday morning with winds of 140 mph.

The storm is expected to remain a strong Category 4 storm by landfall. No Category 4 or greater storm has ever hit the Florida Panhandle.

Here is what to expect and when

— As of the National Weather Service’s 5 a.m. update, Michael was 140 miles south-southwest of Panama City, Florida, but outer bands were already starting to deliver rain.

— Landfall is forecast for around 1 p.m. Wednesday near Panama City, with winds over 140 mph. (A Category 5 hurricane is over 156 mph, which it is not likely to reach.)

— Storm surge could reach a deadly 13 feet, the National Hurricane Center warned. “You cannot hide from storm surge,” Florida Gov. Rick Scott said at a news conference Tuesday. “This storm can kill you.”

— Storm surge of 9 to 13 feet is expected from Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, to Keaton Beach, Florida.

— The Florida Panhandle will start to see tropical storm strength winds (over 38 mph) in the early morning hours. Hurricane strength winds are expected during the midday.

— Rainfall could reach 12 inches in the Florida Panhandle and up to 6 inches, with isolated totals of 8 inches, in the Carolinas.

— Warnings are in effect for more than 300 miles of coastline, the National Weather Service said.

— Michael is forecast to stay a tropical storm as it moves through Georgia and into the Carolinas on Thursday.

— The storm is expected to move further inland later in the week, potentially bringing rain and heavy wind to portions of South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia.
Hurricane Michael strengthens to a category 2 storm with 110 mph winds as it continues to ascend through the Florida Panhandle.