Hurricane Ian strengthened to an “extremely dangerous” Category 4 storm early Wednesday morning.
In a 5 a.m. EDT update, the National Hurricane Center said that the center of Hurricane Ian was located about 125 kilometers west-southwest of Naples, Florida.
Maximum sustained winds have increased to near 140 miles per hour, with higher gusts.
The center of the hurricane is projected to approach the western coast of the Sunshine State and move onshore later in the day.
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The agency warned that it was expected to cause life-threatening storm surge and catastrophic winds and flooding in the Florida peninsula.
Some fluctuations in intensity are possible, the center noted, before Ian reaches the coast and weakening is expected after landfall.
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Ian was moving toward the north-northeast near 10 mph, with a reduction in speed forecast on Wednesday before turning north on Thursday.
On Wednesday evening and Thursday morning, the center will move over central Florida, before it emerges over the western Atlantic by late Thursday.
