Across Florida, universities and colleges are shuttering their campuses as Hurricane Milton races toward the state’s Gulf Coast.

Here is a list of some of the universities and colleges that have announced closures ahead of the storm:

University of Florida: The university will close its offices and cancel classes, including online classes, from Wednesday through Thursday, a university release said. The university expects to reopen Friday morning.

University of South Florida: Campuses will be closed through at least Thursday. The university expects to only hold classes asynchronously on Friday, it said in a news release.

Florida International University: All FIU campuses will be closed through Thursday, according to the university’s website. All classes, including online classes, and events have been canceled. An announcement will be made regarding university operations on Friday, the university said.

Florida Atlantic University: All Florida Atlantic campuses have suspended operations and classes, including online classes, through Thursday, the university said in a post on X.

University of Miami: Classes on the Coral Gables and Marine campuses will be remote through Thursday, the university said in a news release. In-person meetings and campus events have been canceled.

Florida A&M University: All classes and campus operations at Florida A&M University campuses in Jacksonville, Brooksville, Tampa, Orlando and Miami-Davie have been suspended through Friday. The university is expected to resume normal operations on Saturday, and classes will resume on Monday, according to a news release. All assignments and exams will be suspended until Monday.

Palm Beach State College: The college will be closed on Wednesday and Thursday. All classes, extracurricular activities and special events have been canceled.

Nova Southeastern University: The university’s Fort Myers, Tampa Bay and Orlando campuses will stay closed through Friday. Campus operations are scheduled to resume on Saturday.

University of Central Florida: All classes and campus operations have been suspended through Friday. The university is expected to reopen for normal operations on Saturday, and classes will resume Monday. All assignments and exams remain suspended until Monday.

Broward College: Broward College will be closed Wednesday and Thursday. The university anticipates reopening Friday.

Miami Dade College: Classes and operations will be suspended through Thursday. All classes and regular operations are expected to resume as scheduled on Friday.

Floridians are racing against the clock to secure homes and businesses and get well out of harm’s way as Hurricane Milton — now a Category 5 storm — charges toward the state’s Gulf Coast.

Milton is expected to weaken to a Category 3 hurricane by the time it slams into Florida sometime late Wednesday or early Thursday, but it could still be one of the most destructive storms on record for the state.

Here’s what we know about the storm so far:

Storm position and landfall:

Milton is about 405 miles southwest of Tampa, Florida, with sustained winds of 160 mph and is moving northeast at 12 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center’s 11 p.m. ET update.

The storm is forecast to make landfall on the central Gulf Coast of Florida Wednesday night or early Thursday and move off the state’s east coast and over the Atlantic Ocean on Thursday, the NHC said.

Though the storm will weaken before landfall, it will expand greatly in size, meaning its dangerous impacts will be felt over a massive area.

When Milton makes landfall, its tropical storm-force winds will extend about 230 miles outward from its center. That’s far enough to cover the entire width of the state’s peninsula.

The storm’s trajectory is still uncertain and last-minute shifts could have critical implications on who feels the brunt of the storm.

Storm’s likely impacts:

Milton’s outer bands were felt in the Florida Peninsula and the Keys as of late Tuesday evening.

Between 2 and 12 inches of flooding rain, alongside furious winds and storm surge, are forecast in areas including Tampa, Sarasota, Fort Myers and Orlando.

Life-threatening and historic storm surge is forecast in parts of central Florida. The rising waters could reach 10 to 15 feet in some areas — higher than the roofs of many buildings.

Despite frenzied efforts to clean up after Hurricane Helene, mounds of rubble – including sheet metal, cinderblocks and large appliances – remain in neighborhoods. Officials worry Milton’s winds will turn the debris into dangerous projectiles that could hit people or homes.

Evacuations:

The city of Treasure Island, which is still reeling from Helene, is a “ghost town” after most residents heeded warnings to evacuate, Mayor Tyler Payne told CNN Tuesday.

Police in Pinellas County, which includes Treasure Island, were driving through neighborhoods and broadcasting evacuation notices on patrol car loudspeakers on Tuesday.

Roughly one in six gas stations have run out of fuel in Florida as hordes of people scramble to evacuate, according to tracking platform GasBuddy. Florida Highway Patrol troopers are escorting tankers that are carrying fuel to gas stations along evacuation routes, the governor said on Tuesday.

Some major airlines have capped airfares and added additional flights to and from Florida on Tuesday as people try to flee the storm. The Biden administration on Tuesday warned against price gouging.

Localities make final preparations:

Several cities and counties have issued curfews for people who chose to ride out the storm, including Fort Myers Beach and Naples.

In Clearwater, traffic signal boxes are being removed, lift stations are being taken offline in certain areas and potable water is being restricted.

Some of Florida’s biggest tourist attractions are shuttering due to Milton, including all four of Walt Disney World’s main theme parks as well as SeaWorld Orlando, Universal Studios and Busch Gardens.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said response areas have been set up across the state in preparation for the storm. The state has been amassing resources to the various sites since the weekend, the government said.

It is well documented that the Tampa Bay area is extremely vulnerable to hurricanes and that the region has also dodged major hurricanes over the last century.

It is far too early for residents around Tampa Bay to breathe a sigh of relief, but Hurricane Milton wobbled farther south than expected Tuesday, leading to a southern shift in the forecast from the National Hurricane Center.

Meteorologists usually stress not to focus on the exact track and to not even focus on the cone, because significant impacts always occur outside of the cone. In fact, the cone from the National Hurricane Center is only designed to capture the path of the storm two-thirds of the time. That means that one in three times the storm’s track falls outside of the cone. However, that exact track is very important when it comes to the details of the impacts.

The worst storm surge in Hurricane Milton is forecast to be near the landfall point and to the south, based on the angle it is approaching the coast. If the current trajectories showing a path toward Sarasota hold true, the worst storm surge would be into places like Sarasota, Venice and southward into surge-vulnerable places like Port Charlotte and Punta Gorda. On the northern side of the storm, winds across Tampa Bay would largely push water out of the bay, potentially even reducing the water levels as happened during Hurricane Ian, which made landfall near Fort Myers in 2022.

This current trajectory is only about 40 miles south of Tampa or 20 miles south of the mouth of Tampa Bay, and the NHC warns that uncertainty remains and additional wobbles – north or south – are possible. It is also very important to note that Tampa is still within the cone of uncertainty.

Even with a potential track south of Tampa, which would spare that area the worst of the surge, there is still a significant risk of catastrophic hurricane-force winds and flooding rain. Hurricane Milton is expected to grow into a large storm as it approaches landfall, and much of the Florida Peninsula will experience the wrath of the storm.