Wednesday Update: SC coast under tropical storm warning as Milton approaches Florida

As thousands continued to flee Florida, Hurricane Milton continued its powerful trek across the Gulf of Mexico this morning. Milton re-strengthened into a Category 5 hurricane with sustained maximum wind speeds of 160 mph, according to a 6 a.m. update from the Charleston’s National Weather Service office. Since the early morning update, the storm dipped back down to a Category 4 storm around 8 a.m., with wind speeds at about 155 mph. The storm will accelerate toward the northeast today, making landfall on the west coast of Florida early morning Thursday.

Several airports in Florida have suspended flight operations in advance on the oncoming storm and state police officers are escorting fuel trucks to ensure that gasoline is available for those on a journey to flee the storm’s path.

The Lowcountry will start to feel the impact starting late tonight and into Thursday with projected maximum sustained winds of 20-30 mph and 30-40 mph wind gusts. But already, Beaufort and Jasper counties are feeling the effects. Yesterday, the city of Hardeeville notified drivers that they should prepare for heavier traffic on I-95 and Highway 17 because of the mass evacuation of Florida residents heading north.

In many of the local hotels’ parking lots in Beaufort and Jasper County the number of Florida license plates are a majority of the cars parked after a trek from harm’s way.

As of this morning, coastal waters off of Georgia and South Carolina are now under a tropical storm warning. Savannah, coastal Georgia and Jacksonville are also expected to experience rising ocean waters as the counter clockwise storm passes over central Florida.

Beaufort County is under the following weather advisories:

Storm surge watch Tropical storm watch High risk for deadly rip currents

Beaufort County is still not a risk for tornado activity, but since Milton’s winds are coming right on the heels of Helene, Neil Dixon, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service out of Charleston, said strong gusts could more easily knock down jeopardized trees or limbs.

Dixon added that the biggest concern facing the area could be erosion on the Hilton Head beaches. There could be coastal inundation of 2 to 4 feet above normally dry ground in the region, and combined with waves on top of that, Hilton Head might experience significant erosion, Dixon said. Breaker heights for waves are typically between 1 and 2 feet, but with Milton, those breakers could exceed 5 feet. Hilton Head residents should be most aware of the high tide around 2 p.m. Thursday.

Milton formed Saturday in the southwest Gulf of Mexico, unlike most hurricanes’ starting points in the Caribbean or Atlantic.