Hurricane Milton is inching toward Florida's west coast where residents face "life-threatening impacts," according to the National Hurricane Center.

"Milton has the potential to become one of Florida’s most damaging and costly hurricanes," AccuWeather chief meteorologist Jon Porter said, with life-threatening dangers including an extreme storm surge of 10-15 feet and destructive winds.

The most likely path suggests Milton could make landfall Wednesday in the Tampa Bay area and remain a hurricane as it moves across central Florida into the Atlantic Ocean.