The Hurricane Watch that was issued earlier today for the Walt Disney World area has been upgraded to a Hurricane Warning. Hurricane Milton is currently a category 5 storm with maximum sustained winds of 180mph and Central Florida is right in the middle of the forecast path. Here’s the latest.
Hurricane Warning Issued for Walt Disney World Area
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) has issued a Hurricane Warning for Orange County and Osceola County, which includes the Walt Disney World area. Here’s what a Hurricane Warning means, per the NHC:
A Hurricane Warning means that hurricane conditions are expected somewhere within the warning area. A warning is typically issued 36 hours before the anticipated first occurrence of tropical-storm-force winds, conditions that make outside preparations difficult or dangerous. Preparations to protect life and property should be rushed to completion.
Walt Disney World has still not announced any operational changes or cancellations, but we imagine that final preparations for an announcement are being made now. We expect closures to be announced either later this evening or tomorrow morning.
Hurricane Milton Update (5pm)
At 400 PM CDT (2100 UTC), the eye of Hurricane Milton was located near latitude 21.8 North, longitude 90.8 West. Milton is moving toward the east near 10 mph (17 km/h). This general motion is expected through tonight followed by a turn toward the east- northeast and northeast on Tuesday and Wednesday. On the forecast track, the center of Milton is forecast to move near or just north of the Yucatan Peninsula tonight and Tuesday, then cross the eastern Gulf of Mexico and approach the west coast of the Florida Peninsula on Wednesday.
Satellite data indicate that the maximum sustained winds have increased to near 180 mph (285 km/h) with higher gusts. Milton is a potentially catastrophic category 5 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. While fluctuations in intensity are expected, Milton is forecast to remain an extremely dangerous hurricane through landfall in Florida.
Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 30 miles (45 km) from the center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 80 miles (130 km).
As always, keep checking back with us here at BlogMickey.com as we continue to bring you the latest news, photos, and info from around the Disney Parks!