A veteran news meteorologist visibly broke down live on air over Hurricane Milton, as the monster Category 4 storm charts a potentially deadly path towards Florida.
John Morales was reporting on the hurricane on NBC affiliate WTVJ on Monday, breaking down the magnitude of the storm which has come off the back of Hurricane Helene just two weeks earlier.
Looking at satellite imagery of the hurricane’s path, Morales choked up, telling viewers: “I apologize – this is just horrific.”
”It’s just an incredible, incredible, incredible hurricane. It has dropped…,” he said, becoming emotional.
“It has dropped 50 millibars in ten hours.”
He added: “I apologize, this is just horrific.”
The hurricane specialist explained to viewers that when sustained wind speeds begin to exceed 160mph, unimaginable things can start to occur – a frightening situation which he said was undoubtedly caused by global warming and climate change.
Speaking on the threat of Milton to the Yucatan peninsula, Morales said that “the dirty side of the hurricane folks, is on the dirty side of its progress”.
He added that many communities in the Yucatan area “have just the very basics” stressing that the days ahead are “going to be very tough” for people living in the storm’s path.
As of Tuesday morning, Milton has strengthened into a Category 4 hurricane and is forecast to break records as one of the strongest storms of all time, according to the National Hurricane Center.
The NHC warned that residents in Progreso, Mexico, and Tampa face a “life-threatening situation” as the hurricane is expected to bring devastating flooding when it makes landfall on Wednesday evening.
People living in the affected areas are urged to follow evacuation orders and advice from local officials.
The Sunshine State is already grappling with the aftermath of Hurricane Helene – a storm that left at least 227 dead across the US.