Forecasts show Hurricane Michael will likely travel north after making landfall on the Gulf Coast then turn east potentially hitting the Hampton Roads region
But it rapidly intensified, and its top winds clocked in at 60 miles per hour by late Sunday evening.
Even though the storm is predicted to make landfall Wednesday further north, Scott warned that areas as far south as Tampa Bay could be battered by unsafe storm surge as the storm passes by.
Hurricane Michael's path to Florida and Alabama as of 11 a.m. on October 8, 2018.
Michael is the 13th named storm of the 2018 hurricane season, according to hurricane center spokesman Dennis Feltgen.
The Category 1 hurricane, as of 5 p.m. EDT Monday, is forecast to possibly strengthen to a Category 3 with maximum sustained winds topping 111 miles per hour near its center of rotation before reaching the Gulf Coast on Wednesday morning at Panama City Beach, Fla.
Hurlburt's weather staff and base leaders have analyzed the current storm forecast and decided a personnel evacuation is not necessary, the base said.
National Hurricane Center warns Hurricane Michael could produce life-threatening conditions along the Gulf Coast; Adam Klotz reports from the Fox Extreme Weather Center.
The National Hurricane Center expected Michael to become a hurricane later in the day.
In the United States, a storm surge watch has been issued from Navarre, Florida to Anna Maria Island, Florida.
The storm's center track for now is projected to take Michael northeast into southwest Georgia over Albany and east of Macon.
It would impact 35 Florida counties - Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, Holmes, Washington, Bay, Jackson, Calhoun, Gulf, Gadsden, Liberty, Franklin, Leon, Wakulla, Jefferson, Madison, Taylor, Columbia, Hamilton, Suwanee, Lafayette, Dixie, Gilchrist, Levy, Citrus, Pasco, Hernando, Pinellas, Hillsborough, Manatee, Alachua, Union, Bradford and Baker Counties. All schools in Panama City and surrounding Bay County will be closed on Tuesday and Wednesday. "Residents and businesses in coastal Alabama must be vigilant and closely monitor the storm's path and be prepared for a major hurricane".
The National Hurricane Center is issuing advisories for Hurricane Sergio and Tropical Storm Leslie. Also, there could be some storm surge from Michael, hitting already damaged beaches, Pfaff said.
After crossing the Florida panhandle midweek, Michael is also expected to soak Tennessee and swaths of the Mid-Atlantic, including Virginia and Maryland, later this week. "Michael is forecast to be near or at major hurricane strength when it reaches the northeastern Gulf of Mexico Tuesday night and Wednesday". The effects of the storm will reach Horry County most likely on Wednesday or Thursday of this week.
The NWS release said there is considerable uncertainty regarding the track, intensity, and timing of Michael, but confidence is increasing that it will directly impact the southeast Georgia and southeast SC area.
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