Source: Bloomberg.com

BREAKING: Hurricane Milton strengthens into a Category 5 storm as it bears down on Florida’s west coast.

Milton’s top winds have reached 160 miles (257 kilometers) per hour, up from 90 mph at 1 a.m. local time Monday, the US National Hurricane Center said in a special update.

This makes Milton one of the most powerful storms produced in the Atlantic this year, rivaled only by Hurricane Beryl, which raked Texas, Mexico and the Caribbean in July.