Source: Axios
“Hurricane Milton ‘explosively’ intensified to Category 5 on Monday, the National Hurricane Center said, with 175 mile per hour winds measured by 2pm ET. Why it matters: The storm’s escalation — with an 85 mile per hour increase in wind speeds from morning to afternoon — is rare. … Hurricane Milton’s intensification rate, going from a tropical storm to a Cat. 5 hurricane within 48 hours, is behind 2005 Hurricane Wilma on the rapid intensification list, Kieran Bhatia, senior vice president at reinsurance company Guy Carpenter, said on X. Since 1979, only two Atlantic hurricanes had lower October pressures than Milton on Monday afternoon, Colorado State University meteorologist Philip Klotzbach said on X. Those were hurricanes Mitch in 1998 and Wilma in 2005.” (10/07/24)
https://www.axios.com/2024/10/07/hurricane-milton-category-five-intensification