Officials in Florida are urging residents to evacuate now as Hurricane Milton intensifies and sets its sights on the state’s west coast.

Hours before the storm strengthened into a Category 5 hurricane on Monday, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis warned residents to take evacuation orders seriously.

“Time will run out very, very soon,” he said at a news conference.

“If you are in the Tampa Bay area, please evacuate,” Kevin Guthrie, executive director of Florida Emergency Management, urged at the news conference. “Drowning deaths due to storm surge are 100% preventable if you leave.”

More than 50 counties along Florida’s west coast are now under a state of emergency and several counties are under evacuation orders, including Charlotte, Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas and Sarasota. All evacuation orders are listed on the Florida Division of Emergency Management website.

The storm is expected to weaken but will still be a major Category 3 hurricane by the time it makes landfall in Florida late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning.

“If you live in a storm surge evacuation zone and are asked to leave by local officials, please do so,” Michael Brennan, director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Hurricane Center, told ABC News Live on Sunday. “You don’t have to drive hundreds of miles to get to a safe place, often only tens of miles to get inland, out of that evacuation zone, to a shelter, a friend’s or loved one’s house.”

Brennan also urged Florida residents to prepare a disaster kit with several days’ worth of nonperishable food, water, medicine and batteries.

Ahead of landfall on Monday, President Joe Biden approved an emergency declaration for the state so federal aid could begin supplementing local efforts.

Flooding is expected and storm surges pose a significant threat.

A record-breaking storm surge of 8 to 12 feet is expected in the Tampa Bay area as Floridians continue to clean up the 6 to 8 foot storm surge just delivered by Hurricane Helene causes.

As Milton draws closer, Tampa International Airport said it would suspend operations at 9 a.m. Tuesday and remain closed “until it can assess any damage from the storm,” airport officials said. St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport also said it would close on Tuesday and remain closed on Wednesday and Thursday.

The University of Florida said it would cancel classes Wednesday and Thursday but plans to reopen Friday morning.