As of 5 p.m. Tuesday, Hurricane Milton was packing sustained winds of 165 mph with higher gusts and is now a Category 5.

Florida State Fire Marshall Jimmy Patronis issued a warning about fire hazards with lithium-ion batteries and electric vehicles ahead of Hurricane Milton.

Several Northeast Florida school districts announced closures on Monday ahead of Hurricane Milton.

Milton continued to strengthen early Monday over the southern Gulf of Mexico, becoming a Category 4 storm with 150 mph sustained winds, as of 9 a.m. Monday.

Tropical Storm Debby came ashore in Florida as a Category 1 hurricane and quickly downgraded, but the storm still poses serious threats as it slogs on toward Georgia and South Carolina.

Hurricane Beryl has strengthened to Category 5 status as it crosses islands in the southeastern Caribbean.

The Mexican government has sent 25,000 troops to Acapulco after the resort was hit by Hurricane Otis on Oct. 25.

Desperate families are making missing posters and joining online groups to find loved ones out of touch since Hurricane Otis devastated the Mexican Pacific coast city of Acapulco.

Hurricane Lee is whipping up waves of more than 15 feet as the Category 3 storm cranks through open waters just north of the Caribbean region.

Experts say that Hurricane Lee is rewriting old rules of meteorology.

Tracking and predicting storms has drastically improved in the last 100 years.

Meteorologists say Tropical Cyclone Ilsa is forecast to be the most powerful storm to hit Australia in eight years, bringing wind gusts of up to 196 miles per hour as it crosses the northwest coast.

Hurricane Ian is currently hitting the Gulf Coast of Florida after strengthening to a Category 4 storm before making landfall, possibly near Port Charlotte.

There are many ways to categorize a hurricane. The storm’s central pressure is one way. The height of its storm surge is another. How much rain it drops is another. And, of course, the strength of its wind is another. But what causes a hurricane to strengthen or weaken? The answer is simple enough, but multifaceted.

Members of the media and area residents began posting videos and photos on social media showing the impact as the storm hit the area, including what some are calling a “reverse storm surge” where the water was sucked out of Tampa Bay.

Calling Hurricane Ian the "real deal" as he urged Floridians in the storm's immediate path to "hunker down" Wednesday morning, Gov. Ron DeSantis said the powerful Category 4 storm had wind speeds of 155 mph -- knocking on the door of a Category 5 (which starts at 157 mph).

Thirty years ago, Wednesday, South Florida dealt with one of the worst natural disasters on record.

Are people who are fully vaccinated against the virus safe? Dr. Oz, who recently spoke with CNN’s chief medical expert Dr. Sanja Gupta for the Oz program airing Monday, joined The Morning Show to share that he is not as concerned about the variants as some experts. The CDC recently released new guidelines saying that fully vaccinated -- at least two weeks after their second shot -- will no longer be required to quarantine following exposure to someone with COVID-19. “If it’s within three months of being vaccinated, you’re almost certainly protected. He believes that if we get past the next couple of months -- between warmer weather and 100 million people vaccinated -- the CDC might relax its safety protocols.

Hurricane Iota powered up fast Monday morning to 160 mph sustained winds, becoming a Category 5 storm Monday in a perfectly favorable environment known for creating the most intense hurricanes. It is late in the season for top tier major hurricane, but this season has been exceptional with 30 named storms. The combination dropped the storm’s pressure rapidly, 26 MB in six hours, resulting in a stronger storm. This is the 10th named storm to rapidly intensify by at least 35 mph in 24 hours so far this 2020 Atlantic hurricane season. Six out of the last seven “Greek” named storms have rapidly intensified.

MANAGUA – Powerful Hurricane Iota made landfall on Nicaragua's Caribbean coast late Monday, threatening catastrophic damage to the same part of Central America already battered by equally strong Hurricane Eta less than two weeks ago. Iota already had been hitting the Caribbean coasts of Nicaragua and Honduras with torrential rains and strong winds. Iota came ashore just 15 miles (25 kilometers) south of where Hurricane Eta made landfall Nov. 3, also as a Category 4 storm. It also sets the record for the latest Category 5 hurricane on record, beating the record set by the Nov. 8, 1932, Cuba Hurricane. Eta had hit Nicaragua as a Category 4 hurricane, killing more than 130 people as torrential rains caused flash floods and mudslides in parts of Central America and Mexico.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Tropical Storm Eta became a tropical storm again Saturday morning south of Cuba. Maximum sustained winds are now near 40 mph Eta is near the Cayman Islands with 35 mph winds. A tropical Storm Watch covers south Florida and up the east coast stopping at Volusia county. A Tropical Storm Watch is now in effect along the Florida east coast north of Sebastien Inlet to the Brevard/Volusia county line. A Tropical Storm Watch is now in effect for the Florida west coast north of Bonita Beach to Englewood.

MIAMI – Hurricane Zeta lashed Mexico's Caribbean coast resorts around Tulum with high winds and rain Monday night as it headed toward the Yucatan Peninsula and then a possible landfall on the central U.S. Gulf Coast at midweek. It was the second time this month that boat captain Francisco Sosa Rosado had to perform the same maneuver, after Hurricane Delta hit the resort in early October. Trees felled by Hurricane Delta barely three weeks earlier still littered parts of Cancun, stacked along roadsides and in parks. Zeta broke the record for the previous earliest 27th Atlantic named storm that formed Nov. 29, 2005. There was also a Tropical Storm Zeta in 2005, but that year had 28 storms because meteorologists later went back and found they missed one, which then became an “unnamed named storm."

New hope is heading to the Bahamas after the islands were pummeled by Category 5 Hurricane Dorian. Copyright 2019 by WJXT News4Jax - All rights reserved.

NEPTUNE BEACH, Fla. - New hope is heading to the Bahamas after the islands were pummeled by Category 5 Hurricane Dorian. It's coming from Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker and Super Bowl champ Najee Goode, who was inspired when he went to the recent screening of the WJXT Films documentary "96 Hours of Anguish," which was put together by News4Jax anchor and reporter Vic Micolucci. Since its release, it's helped raise awareness and money for relief efforts in The Bahamas. After seeing the documentary, Goode and his wife, Jasmine, helped round up a fresh game plan to help out the storm-torn Bahamas. It's been way more than I thought, you know, being the grind of the season," Goode said.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Hurricane Lorenzo was a Category 2 hurricane Monday evening, setting its sights on the Azores and possibly Ireland. Earlier in Lorenzo's journey, the storm became the only Category 5 hurricane to ever have ventured that far north and east in the Atlantic. Lorenzo was the second Category 5 hurricane of the 2019 Atlantic hurricane season, the prior being Hurricane Dorian as it ravaged the Bahamas. Large swells generated by Lorenzo will continue to spread across much of the north Atlantic basin during the next few days. #Lorenzo has pushed seasonal Atlantic Accumulated Cyclone Energy over above-average NOAA season threshold definition (e.g., 111 ACE).

The Maple Street Biscuit Company is one of the businesses that stepped up to help. Usually on Sundays, the restaurant is closed, but the doors were opened specifically to raise money for the islanders who lost everything to Hurricane Dorian. The Maple Street Biscuit Company has locations in Murray Hill, Jacksonville Beach, Point Meadows, St. Augustine, Julington Creek, and Fleming Island. Other Maple Street locations in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee also participated in the fundraiser. You can see firsthand the damage Hurricane Dorian left behind through our camera.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - After 11 days, the death toll since Hurricane Dorian devastated the Bahamas as a Category 5 storm remains at 50, but more than 1,000 people are missing. News4Jax spent four days on the ground in the hardest hit areas including Marsh Harbor, Fox Town, Treasure Cay and Freeport, witnessing hundreds of Bahamians in dire need. In the video above, reporter Vic Micolucci shows the devastation he witnessed firsthand during his trip. Personnel said they found 10 bodies in four days, and they believe there are many more beneath the debris. Here is a list of the nonprofits News4Jax witnessed on the ground in the Abacos:Copyright 2019 by WJXT News4Jax - All rights reserved.

After 11 days, the death toll since Hurricane Dorian devastated the Bahamas as a Category 5 storm remains at 50, but more than 1,000 people are missing. Copyright 2019 by WJXT News4Jax - All rights reserved.

Hurricane Dorian struck the Bahamas as a Category 5, leaving tens of thousands of people on the islands without homes, running water, electricity and basic necessities. Copyright 2019 by WJXT News4Jax - All rights reserved.

The UK Ministry of Defence has released aerial images of the damage from Dorian on Great Abaco , in the Bahamas. They were taken from a Royal Navy Wildcat helicopter. Hide Caption

NOAA's forecast for the path of Hurricane Dorian as of Monday, September 2 at 4 a.m. An 8-year-old boy from the Abaco Islands apparently drowned in rising waters, his grandmother told Eyewitness News in the Bahamas. FOLLOW LIVE UPDATESThe storm has already wiped out power to Nassau and the rest of New Providence, the country's most populous island, Bahamas Power and Light said. "It's just an absolutely devastating, life-threatening situation," said Ken Graham, director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami. How Dorian could pummel the USAfter Dorian leaves the Bahamas, it threatens to turn its destructive force on the US Southeast.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Hurricane Dorian is starting to take a more northerly turn, but is still moving dangerous close to Florida's East Coast, the National Hurricane Center's 2 p.m. advisory shows. On this track, the core of extremely dangerous Hurricane Dorian will continue to pound Grand Bahama Island through much of Monday and Monday night. The hurricane will then move dangerously close to the Florida east coast late tonight through Wednesday evening and then move dangerously close to the Georgia and South Carolina coasts on Wednesday night and Thursday. Although gradual weakening is forecast, Dorian is expected to remain a powerful hurricane during the next couple of days. The forecast path of the storm shows Dorian staying just offshore of Florida's east coast and bringing it offshore of Jacksonville Wednesday afternoon.

Hurricane Dorian slammed into the Bahamas Sunday night, unleashing ferocious winds and rain, destroying buildings and killing a 7-year-old boy. As it barreled towards the islands on Sunday, a NOAA aircraft flew inside the eye of the storm. Video revealed a huge bank of white clouds inside the Category 5 hurricane. INSIDE THE EYE OF HURRICANE DORIAN - #NOAA42 Kermit flies through Category 5 Hurricane #Dorian on 09/01/19 morning mission (credit: Ian Sears, NOAA). "We are facing a hurricane that we have never seen in The Bahamas," Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Minnis wrote on Twitter Sunday.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The predicted track of Hurricane Dorian is moving further away from the Florida coastline as it becomes better organized as a powerful Category 4 storm. At 5 a.m. the major storm was still packing extreme winds of 150 mph -- 7 mph short of Category 5. The latest track keeps Dorian just offshore of Florida if it follows the center line. On its current track, the core of Dorian was expected to be near or over portions of the Bahamas on Sunday. The forecast path of the storm shows Dorian staying just offshore of Florida's East Coast early next week and bringing it past Jacksonville about 115 miles offshore next Wednesday around noon.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Over the past 100 years, only 25 hurricanes with sustained winds of 111 mph or above -- the threshold of a major hurricane -- have reached Florida. Some of these Category 3, 4, or 5 storms you'll likely remember: Andrew, Charlie, Jean, Wilma and last year's Hurricane Michael. Irma, which some people in Northeast Florida are still recovering from, was one of 11 Category 4 storms to reach Florida since 1919. Of these 25 major storms to hit the state in the last century, 44% were in the last 25 years. Major hurricanes (Category 3 or above) over the last 50 yearsCopyright 2019 by WJXT News4Jax - All rights reserved.

Simply known as the Labor Day Storm, the 1935 hurricane was the strongest Atlantic hurricane to ever make landfall and the first designated Category 5 hurricane to ever touch the United States. The storm hit the Florida Keys on September 2KEY WEST, Fla. - We don't know yet what will happen as Hurricane Dorian approaches Florida's east coast this weekend, but its timing coincides with another Labor Day hurricane that rocked south Florida in 1935. Simply known as the Labor Day Storm, the 1935 hurricane was the strongest Atlantic hurricane to ever make landfall and the first designated Category 5 hurricane to ever touch the United States. The storm hit the Florida Keys on September 2 with peak winds of 200 mph. Dorian is expected to strengthen to at least a Category 1 storm over Labor Day weekend and could possibly reach Category 3 strength before all is said and done.