For the third time in 13 months, the town of Horseshoe Beach, part of Florida's Big Bend along the Gulf of Mexico, took a direct hit from a hurricane.

Milton is due to turn into a Category 3 hurricane and make landfall on Wednesday, the National Hurricane Center warned

The National Hurricane Center said Monday morning Hurricane Milton had strengthened into a Category 3 hurricane.

Hurricane Milton rapidly strengthened into a Category 3 hurricane overnight, days ahead of its expected landfall on Florida’s west coast, where it’s expected to bring up to 12 feet of storm surge. Most of Florida’s west coast is under a hurricane or tropical storm watch,

Milton will probably make landfall Wednesday as a Category 3 hurricane, with the potential for a disastrous storm surge in the Tampa Bay area.

For the latest news on Hurricane Milton, visit USA TODAY's hurricane tracker for Monday, Oct. 7. Tropical Storm Milton formed in the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday as forecasters expect the storm to quickly strengthen into a major hurricane over the next few days.

The National Hurricane Center says people across Florida should take notice: Milton is still just a tropical storm off Mexico, but it's gaining strength and is expected to intensify rapidly as it move

The storm is forecast to strengthen and bring the risk of life-threatening impacts to portions of Florida’s West Coast next week, with hurricane and storm-surge watches likely being in effect Sunday.

Florida is bracing as Hurricane Milton has intensified into a Category 2 storm two days before it’s due to make landfall on the state’s Gulf Coast, where communities are still dealing with the effects of Hurricane Helene.