Milton, for now just a tropical storm off the coast of Mexico, could intensify rapidly into a major hurricane before slamming midweek into the storm-ravaged Gulf Coast.

Milton will probably make landfall Wednesday as a Category 2 or 3 hurricane, with the potential for a disastrous storm surge in the Tampa Bay area.

Hurricane Milton is expected to form Sunday and grow into a major hurricane that will hit Florida’s Gulf Coast with potentially “life-threatening” storm surge, flooding and