Duke Energy has issued a warning that they are preparing for over a million power outages in Florida as Hurricane Milton approaches the region.

The utility company announced plans to position 16,000 workers, including teams from Kentucky, Ohio, and Indiana, at locations along the expected path of Milton, ready to begin power restoration as soon as conditions permit.

“The intensity of Hurricane Milton is anticipated to be unprecedented for the Tampa Bay area,” stated Todd Fountain, storm director at Duke Energy Florida, in a press release on Tuesday.

On Tuesday evening, Milton reached Category 5 status again, with wind speeds hitting 165 mph.

Although the storm is forecasted to weaken prior to landfall on Wednesday night, John Cangialosi, an expert with the National Hurricane Center, cautioned that “Milton could end up being one of the most devastating hurricanes in recorded history for west-central Florida.”

Helene’s aftermath still unresolved

The Southeast is continuing its recovery from Hurricane Helene.

Reports show that over 1 million residents in Georgia and North Carolina are without power as of Tuesday, according to YSL News’s outage tracker.

In a separate release, Duke Energy indicated that many customers in North Carolina who are experiencing outages are facing difficulties in regaining power due to the severe damage inflicted on their homes.

“Unfortunately, the destruction from Helene is beyond anything we’ve ever seen in the western Carolinas,” remarked Jason Hollifield, the storm director for Duke Energy in the Carolinas. “We are now implementing a focused strategy for our operations across western North Carolina.”

Since September 27, the company has successfully restored 2.6 million outages, which includes about 1.4 million in North Carolina.