The last time the eye of a major storm like Hurricane Milton directly struck Tampa Bay was 1921 when the city was a sleepy backwater.

Milton rapidly strengthened into a Category 4 hurricane Monday on a path toward Florida population centers including Tampa and Orlando, threatening a dangerous storm surge in Tampa Bay and setting the stage for potential mass evacuations less than two weeks after a catastrophic Hurricane Helene swamped the coastline.

Milton is the second storm this season to reach Category 5 strength, joining Hurricane Beryl, which became the earliest Category 5 storm on record. Helene peaked as a Category 4 s