Florida residents have been warned to avoid Milton’s flooding where possible due to the risk of deadly flesh-eating bacteria.

The state health department says Milton’s storm surge will contain elevated levels of Vibrio bacteria.

It can infect people with open wounds, or those with compromised immune systems or liver disease.

Diabetic patients and people with cancer are also more vulnerable to Vibrio infections.

Heavy rains and flooding expected during Milton increase the concentration of Vibrio in the water.

Milton’s winds begin to hit the coasts of Florida. The eye of the storm should hit the Tampa Bay area as a Category 4 hurricane in the early hours of Thursday.

Vibrio bacteria are imaged under a microscope. The flesh-eating bacteria will be present in greater quantities in Milton’s floodwaters, health officials warn

Texan Adam Perez became infected with Vibrio after dipping his toe in water at a water park

Perez, pictured in hospital, suffered terrible swelling and lost much of the flesh on the bottom of his right leg. People in Milton’s path have been warned to stay out of the flood waters to avoid suffering the same ordeal

• Hurricane Milton was upgraded back to a Category 5 storm as it barrels toward the west coast of Florida.
• The Tampa Bay area, home to more than 3.3 million people, faced the possibility of widespread destruction after avoiding direct hits from major hurricanes for more than a century.
• Milton is expected to make landfall in Florida as an “extremely dangerous hurricane” Wednesday night or early Thursday.
• The latest models show Milton reaching Tampa at 1 a.m. Thursday.

• Milton was about 300 miles (480 kilometers) southwest of Tampa early Wednesday with maximum sustained winds of 160 mph (260 kph), the hurricane center reported.
• It was moving northeast at 14 mph early Wednesday and was expected to continue moving in that direction through Wednesday night with an increase in forward speed, with landfall expected late Wednesday or early Thursday morning.
• It was expected to turn east-northeast and east on Thursday and Friday.

• Clearwater, Florida, looked deserted Wednesday morning as the area prepared for Hurricane Milton, which is expected to make landfall Wednesday evening.

• Joe, in a video now circulating widely online, explains that “God” told him to “come over here and get a boat.” ‘He’s behind me. I’m in good shape. I don’t sweat it.’

• Researchers had a bumpy ride through the storm as they collected data on historic Hurricane Milton.
• They call their hurricane plane “miss piggy,” according to their social media.

• Officials said those who choose to stay put and ride out Hurricane Milton would be left to fend for themselves, with Tampa Mayor Jane Castor stating that the expected 15-foot storm surge for her city would be deep enough to flooding entire houses.
• “So when you’re in it, that’s basically the coffin you’re in,” she said flatly.

• Pinellas County officials have warned that the storm surge could flood entire homes in some areas.
• They have said homes could be torn from their foundations and warned people in the danger zone that they are unlikely to survive the storm surge.

• Officials have warned that even inland places will experience massive flooding due to sustained rainfall of between 12 and 16 inches in the Tampa area.
• The heaviest rain showers are expected to fall between 9am and 5am and could lead to catastrophic flooding.
• Rainfall is expected in the south as the I-4 corridor includes Orlando, as reported by The New York Times.

• At least eleven counties in Florida, home to some 5.9 million people, are under mandatory evacuation orders.
• The National Hurricane Center forecast that Milton, a Category 5 hurricane, would likely weaken during much of its approach but would remain a major hurricane when it makes landfall late Wednesday or early Thursday.

A thunderstorm and dark gray clouds were seen over Tampa Bay Tuesday evening as Milton moved closer to the area.

The sun-drenched city regularly experiences storms. But its location in the Gulf of Mexico generally protects the country from hurricanes, which often form in the Atlantic Ocean.

Milton is expected to be the worst hurricane to hit Tampa since 1921. Parts of the area were flooded two weeks ago by Hurricane Helene, killing twelve local residents.

But Helene quickly moved north, where it caused the most destruction in North Carolina and Tennessee, flooding valleys and wiping entire towns off the map.

More than 230 people were killed by Helene, and the death toll is expected to rise.

Milton is expected to bring much more extreme weather, including a five-metre wall of water known as a storm surge.

Tampa Bay residents in the storm’s path have been given days to evacuate, but some have chosen to stay behind.