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The Category 3 storm made landfall near Florida’s Siesta Key, a barrier island in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Sarasota, according to the National Hurricane Center. It’s forecast to remain a hurricane as it crosses the Florida Peninsula and moves into the Atlantic Ocean.

ExploreAs Hurricane Milton advances toward Florida, evacuees stream north

Georgia cities like Brunswick, Augusta and Valdosta — still grappling with power outages and heavy damage from Helene — could again be whipped by tropical storm-force winds and 2 to 6 inches of rain starting late Wednesday, with higher totals possible, the NHC predicts.

As a result, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp declared a state of emergency for counties near the Florida and South Carolina borders, and near the coast.

“As we continue to recover from Hurricane Helene, I have extended the state of emergency for affected counties. For as long as needed, we will work with those on the local level to ensure resources are available for those who need them following this devastating storm,” Kemp wrote on X.

On Florida’s west coast, “extremely dangerous” conditions are expected, the NHC warns. A large area of destructive storm surge with inundations of 10 feet or greater is projected.

“That’s well above the height of any person up ... even getting into the second story of a building, and it’s not just the water — it’s not going to be filling up like a bathtub. This is water that’s going to violently be pushed on shore from the Gulf of Mexico with destructive wave action on top of it, and you’re going to have structural damage to buildings. Some buildings will wash away. Evacuation routes will be quickly cut off,” NHC Director Michael Brennan warned in a Tuesday evening update.

The NHC has urged residents to evacuate as soon as possible if ordered to do so.

Brennan said, during previous hurricanes, some people who tried to leave at the last minute drowned in their cars.

“Please do not stay in these environments in this unsafe area. Get out now while you still can,” he said.

For anyone planning to ride out the storm, “preparations to protect life and property, including being ready for long-duration power outages, should be rushed to completion,” the NHC said Wednesday.

Forecast path for Milton

Hurricane or tropical storm warnings are in effect along the entire Florida Gulf Coast, where devastating, life-threatening winds and floods are expected.

Kemp encouraged Florida evacuees to seek shelter in North Georgia or Alabama as resources remain strained in South Georgia communities hit hardest after Helene. The Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency urged evacuees to head to Atlanta, Columbus, Macon and Albany.

”I’m already hearing hotel rooms are full all the way to the metro Atlanta area,” Kemp said Tuesday. “So people are going to have to either keep going north or turn and go back into parts of Alabama to try to find hotel rooms or places that they can stay.”

ExploreFloridians fleeing Milton: What to know if you’re headed to Georgia

The governor also urged Georgians in coastal areas to prepare for winds between 30 and 40 mph and several inches of rain that could cause flash flooding. He said Milton’s impact in Georgia “won’t be anything like” that of Helene, but that people in coastal counties should stock up on extra water and food to last a couple of days in case they temporarily lose power or roads are blocked.

”We just want to over-prepare and hope this storm will under-deliver for us,” Kemp said.

ExploreHurricane Milton barrels toward Florida, Georgia towns reeling from Helene

Several Georgia hotels and campgrounds are opening their doors to evacuees. In metro Atlanta, for example, Atlanta Motor Speedway and the National Indoor RV Centers opened their sites to those needing a place to stay. Georgia State Parks have also been open to RVs and campers.

A few RVs were already parked at the speedway Tuesday morning. Robert Williams and his wife, Paula, had just arrived after fleeing their home in Clermont, Florida.

“My wife says, ‘We’re not staying.’ I go, ‘You’re right, we’re not staying,’” Robert Williams told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “So (we) loaded up the motorhome and came, just going north.”

The couple stayed in Macon overnight and drove further north after Paula Williams heard about Atlanta Motor Speedway’s campground on Facebook.

“We tried to get camping spots all the way up to Savannah ... but they were all full,” Robert Williams said.

Due to evacuations, Georgia’s interstates saw large increases in traffic volume, the Georgia Department of Transportation said Tuesday. Volume on I-75 was four times higher than historical averages and, by 8 a.m. Tuesday, the volume on I-75 North was 280% higher than normal between the Florida border and Macon.

GDOT is reminding drivers to call 511 to get traffic conditions, find out about evacuation routes or request roadside assistance.