Hours before coming ashore on the western tip of Cuba, Hurricane Ian strengthened into a major hurricane, reaching top sustained winds of 125 mph.
While the hurricane’s brief interaction with land will prevent it from intensifying temporarily, the National Hurricane Center said it expects Ian to resume strengthening when it reaches the Gulf of Mexico later today.
While nearly all of Florida’s west coast needs to brace for a direct landfall from Ian, the center of the National Hurricane Center's forecast cone has Ian going near Tampa. Forecasters warn the storm could dump 12-16 inches of rain in the region.
The National Hurricane Center is also warning of around 5-10 feet of storm surge for the area.
After it slowly comes ashore Wednesday or Thursday, the National Hurricane Center said Ian could eventually end up bringing heavy rain to Georgia and the Carolinas by the weekend.
