this is what forecasters are warning about as hurricane ian, a dangerous category 3 storm, maximum sustained winds of 120 miles per hour. it s strengthening, with florida right in its sights. take a look at this. there s the radar. if you are in florida right now, or you know someone there, the next few hours could really be crucial. millions of people, millions are under warnings and watches as this massive storm takes aim at that state. the numbers are staggering. 15 million people under hurricane warnings in southwestern florida. the national hurricane center says they need to rush to finish preparations to protect their lives and their properties. more than 7 million are under a tornado watch in central and southern florida. and that includes miami, and that through 5 am. and that could change. we re going to get updated forecast about the hours here. over two and a half million people are under evacuation orders right now. one and three quarter million of them under mand
most here? it s actually going to be a multi hazard event. so, for the areas, the strongest surge will be to the south, where the winds are onshore. so, we re looking at fort myers and marco island. marco island i m really concerned about tonight for the peak surge. but then the winds and the rain spreading inland along into the north, along into the north of the track. and that would include the i-four corridor, tampa, orlando, and potentially all the way up to jacksonville. yeah, that s a big area. so, meteorologist jamie, has said that this storm could be entering a another period of rapid intensification. can you tell us what this is and what effect climate change has on this phenomena? we can come back and talk about climate change at a later time. i want to talk about the here and. now we think the rapid intensification is probably almost done. there could be a little bit more intensification as it still over the warm waters of