This doesn't look good.
Hurricane Milton is now a Category 5 storm, with sustained winds of 155 mph as it crawls past Mexico's Yucatan peninsula toward Florida's Gulf coast. The current forecast track line has Milton hitting the Tampa Bay area at around 7pm on Wednesday.
The forecast has Milton maintaining hurricane strength as it crosses the Florida peninsula from Tampa to New Smyrna Beach, a path that would take it over the major Central Florida theme parks, from Busch Gardens Tampa Bay to Walt Disney World, SeaWorld, and Universal Orlando.
All parks are operating normally now, though Orange County is now under Hurricane Watch, and I have heard that ride-out crews have been put on alert.
Right now, this looks like the biggest storm to make a direct hit on Florida's theme park corridor since we have been covering the industry. Of course, storms can drift from forecast paths, so anyone in Florida should be preparing for this one.
And if you were planning to visit Florida this week, now would be an excellent time to inquire about rescheduling. Disney and Universal offer rescheduling without penalty for vacations booked with them when the area is under hurricane watches and warnings, as it is now. Contact your travel agent.
For the latest official word on the storm, visit the National Hurricane Center website.
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