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Hurricane Ian made landfall in Florida as a Category 4 hurricane Wednesday afternoon (September 28), bringing 150 mph gusts and storm surges, according to WESH.
The terrifying store came ashore near Cayo Costa with maximum sustained winds of 155 mph as of 3 p.m. local time. Reporters say it's 20 miles west of Fort Myers and Punta Gorda.
Forecasters expect Ian to trudge through the Florida peninsula Wednesday night into Thursday morning (September 29), pushing into the Atlantic by late Thursday. Lethal storm surges, sharp winds, and severe flooding are expected as the hurricane makes its way through the Sunshine State.
Tampa is one of the major cities in the storm's path, and it could be the first time since 1921 that a hurricane directly struck the metro area. Some regions, like South Florida, weren't in the path and still experienced gnarly floods, tornadoes, and dangerous winds.
Ian started off as a tropical storm but rapidly gained strength as it swept through Cuba and approached the U.S. The hurricane was Category 3 yesterday and intensified Wednesday morning, being just shy of Category 5 by 2 mph.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis advised residents remaining in the state to "hunker down" and treat the storm seriously.