A TV weatherman has struggled to hold back tears while giving an update on Hurricane Milton, as it barrels towards the US.

“Incredible, incredible hurricane,” John Morales said, tearing up on Tuesday (local time), as Milton was upgraded to a category five storm.

“It has dropped 50 millibars in 10 hours. I apologise, this is just horrific.”

The emotion remained evident in Morales’s voice even after he went off camera to continue to explain the storm’s growth and trajectory.

“The seas are just so incredibly incredibly hot,” he told viewers.

“Record hot, as you might imagine. You know what’s driving that, I don’t need to tell you. Global warming, climate change leading to this and becoming an increasing threat.”

He said that even though Milton was expected to weaken as it approached, “it is so incredibly strong right now”. He said it would bring winds of about 260km/h and would be “nothing less than a major hurricane when it makes landfall in Florida”.

Later, Morales shared the clip to social media, saying he had debated about doing so. But he said it was another warning.

“Frankly, YOU should be shaken too, and demand climate action now,” he wrote on a post on X.

430pm CDT Oct 8th — Observations from the Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunters (@53rdWRS) confirm that #Hurricane #Milton is a Category 5 hurricane with max sustained winds of 165 mph. The minimum central pressure was down to 905 mb (26.72 inches).

TCU: https://t.co/QFMVE0t85y pic.twitter.com/fYUsyunaGa

— National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) October 8, 2024

More than a million people have been ordered to flee, with almost all of Florida’s west coast under a hurricane or tropical storm warning as Milton edges closer.

It is expected to make landfall in the Tampa Bay region on Wednesday (local time) – the first such storm since 1921 to hit an area that is home more than 3.3 million people.

Milton is expected to bring towering storm surges and turn debris from Hurricane Helene’s devastation 12 days ago into projectiles.

Tampa Mayor Jane Castor warned people against riding out the storm, calling Helene a mere wake-up call.

“If you choose to stay in one of those evacuation areas, you’re going to die,” Castor said.

US President Joe Biden has postponed a planned trip to Germany and Angola to remain at the White House to monitor Hurricane Milton.

As the roads jammed with fleeing locals, there were long delays on local highways and fears that petrol will run out.

“You do not have to get on the interstate and go far away,” Governor Ron DeSantis said on Tuesday.

“You can evacuate tens of miles; you do not have to evacuate hundreds of miles away. You do have options.”

Florida authorities had more than 300 dump trucks working around the clock, which had removed 1200 loads of debris, he said.

On Tuesday, rubbish trucks trundled up a nearly deserted street in normally bustling Indian Rocks Beach to gather mounds of debris. Sheriff’s deputies used a loudspeaker to urge anyone left to escape as soon as possible.

Major theme parks Walt Disney World and Universal remained open on Tuesday ahead of Hurricane Milton’s expected hit.

Disney said it was operating under normal conditions and planned, for now, to close only campgrounds and rental cabins in wooded areas.

Both theme parks said they would continue monitoring the weather and adjust accordingly.

Early on Tuesday, the US National Hurricane Centre downgraded Milton to a category four hurricane, but forecasters said it still posed “an extremely serious threat to Florida.”

Forecasters warned the sea could surge as high as 4.57 metres at Tampa Bay, leading to evacuation orders for beach communities all along the coast.

In Florida, that means anyone who stays is on their own and first responders are not expected to risk their lives to rescue them at the height of the storm.

DeSantis said the state had helped evacuate more than 200 health care facilities in Milton’s path, and more than 30 county-run shelters were open.

Milton is forecast to remain a dangerous hurricane through landfall and as it crosses central Florida toward the Atlantic Ocean. Rainfall totals of up to 200 millimetres are possible.

-with AAP