WATCH WPTV'S LIVE COVERAGE:
The WPTV First Alert Weather team and WPTV News team are spread out across South Florida and the Treasure Coast, monitoring the impacts of Hurricane Milton as it closes in on the state.
TRACKING THE TROPICS: Hurricane Center | Hurricane Guide
9 a.m.
Cloudy and calm conditions in downtown West Palm Beach, but things could change quickly.
A tornado watch has been issued for Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, and Okeechobee counties until 9 p.m. Wednesday.
7:55 a.m.
According to the Wednesday 8 a.m. advisory from the National Hurricane Center, Milton has weakened slightly to a Category 4 storm with maximum sustained winds of 155 mph.
Landfall is still projected at approximately 2 a.m. Thursday in the Sarasota area, south of Tampa.
7:21 a.m.
The calm before the storm. Thanks to WPTV News viewer Larry Misiewicz for capturing this gorgeous Sunrise off North Hutchinson Island.
7:15 a.m.
As the Sun rose, WPTV Chopper 5 captured an aerial view of flooding in Indian River Estates, south of Fort Pierce in St. Lucie County.
This was the same area that WPTV News journalist Brooke Chau reported from earlier in the morning.
Chopper 5 spotted flooding going up the driveways of multiple homes. This water is not related to Hurricane Milton, but is still left over from heavy rain earlier in the week.
6:47 a.m.
Very little activity at Palm Beach International Airport with virtually no travelers at TSA checkpoints.
The airport said it will suspend flight operations at 9 p.m. Wednesday and will "reopen when safe to do so."
Major airports in Tampa, Orlando, St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Sarasota, and Fort Myers have either suspended operations on Tuesday or are planning to do so Wednesday morning.
5:55 a.m.
Dozens of Florida Power and Light utility crews are staged at the South Florida Fairgrounds near West Palm Beach, ready to respond to any storm-related outages.
A FPL spokeswoman said more tham 14,000 lineman from 37 states are in Florida to help restore power.
"These crews here, we've been seeing them dropped off by buses," WPTV News journalist Tyler Hatfield reported. "They're gonna be working around the clock, in the rain, in the wind, to help you restore power."
5:35 a.m.
Florida Power and Light is using the Palm Beach Kennel Club parking lot near West Palm Beach as a staging area and will deploy resources from there to other parts of the state starting at 7 a.m. Wednesday.
FPL uses the Kennel Club as a staging area for every major storm with equipment like bulldozers, trailers, lights, and generators.
Earlier this week, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said utility workers from approximately 40 states have traveled to Florida to assist with hurricane-related outages.
5:14 a.m.
According to the 5 a.m. advisory from the National Hurricane Center, Hurricane Milton is forecast to make landfall on Florida's west coast near Sarasota, south of Tampa, at approximately 2 a.m. Thursday.
St. Lucie, Indian River, and Okeechobee counties are under a hurricane warning, while Martin County is under a hurricane watch. Palm Beach County remains under a tropical storm warning.
4:20 a.m.
With only hours before Hurricane Milton makes landfall in Florida, here's an important reminder to be careful and stay safe if you're planning to put up hurricane shutters at the last minute on Wednesday.
West Palm Beach police said a 69-year-old man was taken to the hospital on Tuesday after he fell off a ladder while putting up shutters.
Police said the man was installing shutters on the second story of a home in the 5100 block of Northwest 51st Way when he lost his footing and fell, injuring his head and leg.
He was taken to St. Mary's Medical Center.
3:52 a.m.
The power supplies along the docks in Riviera Beach are covered in duct tape and plastic wrap to protect them from the conditions of Hurricane Milton.
In addition, ferries that are usually docked here have been moved.
3:31 a.m.
Areas near the Saint Sebastian River in Indian River County are already experiencing major flooding ahead of Hurricane Milton's arrival. Indian River County is under a hurricane warning.
WPTV News reporter Kate Hussey measured 16 inches of water near the Saint Sebastian River, where a playground is no longer accessible.
3:11 a.m.
The Village of Wellington is taking steps to protect the Patriot Memorial on Forest Hill Boulevard, which is dedicated to victims of the 9/11 terror attacks.
Large etched glass panels inscribed with the names of the nearly 3,000 lives lost are boarded up on Wednesday, as village officials are very concerned about strong winds from Hurricane Milton.
In addition to securing the glass, public works crews spent Tuesday lowering canals and clearing roadways in anticipation of Milton's wind gusts.
Palm Beach County is under a tropical storm warning.
2:33 a.m.
WPTV News journalist Brooke Chau found several inches of flooding in Indian River Estates, south of Fort Pierce in St. Lucie County.
At Savannah Street and Buchanan Drive, water from rounds of heavy rain over the past few days — unrelated to Hurricane Milton — was seeping into front yards.
"This isn't a pond. This isn't a lake. This is a residential neighborhood," Chau said. "These roads are just absolutely oversaturated from the rain that we got earlier this week. This isn't even the effects yet of Hurricane Milton."
St. Lucie County is under a hurricane warning because of the threat of Milton.
2:10 a.m.
WPTV News journalist Michael Hoffman was in Jensen Beach where a parking lot along the coast was flooded with several inches of water from storms earlier this week.
"As we were driving up here, a lot of neighborhoods with their driveways, their streets underwater," Hoffman said. "And the storm hasn't even really hit here yet."
Martin County is under a hurricane watch, and the county has opened four emergency shelters ahead of the storm's impact.
