Hurricane Milton remains a ferocious storm that could land a once-in-a-century direct hit on Tampa and St. Petersburg, engulfing the populous region with towering storm surges and turning debris from Helene’s devastation 12 days ago into projectiles.

NASA released footage of the view of Milton from the International Space Station on Tuesday as it approached as a Category 4 storm.

The National Hurricane Center predicted Milton, a monstrous Category 5 hurricane during much of its approach, would likely weaken but remain a major hurricane when it makes landfall late Wednesday.

Milton looms in the Gulf less than two weeks after a catastrophic Hurricane Helene swamped the coastline and killed more than 230 people in several Southeast states.