Hurricane Milton remains a ferocious storm that could land a once-in-a-century direct hit on Tampa and St. Petersburg, engulfing the populous region with towering storm surges and turning debris from Helene’s devastation 12 days ago into projectiles.

Hurricane Milton began its turn toward Florida on Tuesday rebounding back to Category 5 strength with a forecast landfall on the Gulf Coast south of Tampa Bay still as a major hurricane and the threat of 15-foot storm surge,