Milton forecast strengthening into Category 3 and is expected to make landfall in Florida this week

Hurricane Milton, which formed as a tropical storm in the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday afternoon, strengthened into a Category 1 hurricane on Sunday. As CBS News reports, it is expected to move along the west coast of Tampa as a Category 3 hurricane by Wednesday , Florida, makes landfall.

In a warning Sunday evening, National Hurricane Center (NHC) forecasters said Milton was heading toward Florida across the central and eastern Gulf of Mexico. An east-northeast movement is forecast on Monday before the storm gains speed on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has warned that the state is preparing for the possible evacuation of over 6 million residents while still cleaning up the devastation left by Hurricane Helene last week. He has expanded the declaration of a state of emergency to 51 counties.

According to the White House, President Biden was briefed on the situation – including the hurricane's “potential impacts” on Florida's Gulf Coast and the work of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in advance of the storm.

According to the NHC, the Mexican government has issued a hurricane warning for the coast of Mexico from Celestún to Cabo Catoche and a tropical storm warning from Celestún to Cancun. Those in the Florida Peninsula, Florida Keys and northwest Bahamas should monitor progress.

Where is Hurricane Milton and what path is it taking?

As of Sunday, 5:00 p.m. ET:

• Milton was located approximately 275 miles west-northwest of Progreso, Mexico.

• It was about 805 miles west-southwest of Tampa.

• The storm had maximum sustained winds of 85 miles per hour.

• The storm was moving eastward at a speed of 7 miles per hour, or 100 degrees, across the Gulf of Mexico.

Category 1 wind speeds range from 74 to 95 mph, while Category 2 wind speeds range from 96 to 110 mph and Category 3 wind speeds range from 111 to 129 mph, according to the NHC.

The risk of “life-threatening effects” is increasing for parts of Florida’s west coast, the NHC said Sunday morning. Storm surge is expected to raise water levels along the northern coast of the Yucatan Peninsula by as much as 2 to 4 feet above ground level. Near the coast, this rise will be accompanied by large and destructive waves throughout the week.

Residents of these areas should ensure they have a hurricane plan, the center warned.

Parts of the Florida Peninsula and Florida Keys are expected to see 5 to 10 inches of rainfall through Wednesday night, with localized rainfall totals of up to 15 inches. Such rains pose “the risk of significant flash flooding, urban and regional flooding, as well as the possibility of moderate to severe river flooding,” forecasters said.

Meanwhile, parts of the northern Yucatan Peninsula are expected to experience 5 to 10 cm of rainfall.

Outside of Hurricane Milton, Hurricane Kirk strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane on Sunday. As of 4 p.m. ET, Kirk is accelerating north-northeast over open water. According to the NHC, there are no coast guards or warnings.

Milton arrives days after Helene

Hurricane Milton comes just over a week after Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida's Big Bend region as a monstrous Category 4 storm, causing at least 20 deaths in Florida alone.

After making landfall with winds of 140 miles per hour, the storm moved inland across the Southeast, killing more than 200 people and leaving widespread destruction in its wake. After the storm, the state's infrastructure and emergency services were overwhelmed. As of 5:10 p.m. ET Sunday, over 350,000 utility customers were still without power in Florida.

Read more from Yahoo News: Helene shows that in the age of climate change, hurricanes don't just destroy coastlines

Active hurricane season

Hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30, but the peak of increased activity is usually from August to October. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a “typical” Atlantic hurricane season will typically see about 14 named storms, “of which seven become hurricanes and three become major hurricanes.”

In early October, eight hurricanes formed in the Atlantic – Milton was the 13th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season. As CNN notes, hurricane season is moving faster than expected. Normally, the 13th storm of the season would not hit until October 25th at the earliest.

Earlier this week, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas warned that FEMA does not have the resources to get through the season. President Biden said this week that Congress may need to pass additional spending legislation in the next few months to fund states' recovery efforts.