Hurricane Ian is projected to bring a perilous storm surge and winds as strong as 140 mph
when it nears Florida's Gulf Coast in the middle of this week, the National Hurricane Center said on Monday
Ian had maximum sustained winds of 85 mph as of 2 p.m. ET Monday
President Biden and Gov. Ron DeSantis have declared emergencies in Florida, easing the way for federal and state agencies to coordinate their planning and response.
Victoria Colson, 31, of Tampa, Fla., loads sandbags into her truck along with other residents who waited for over 2 hours at Himes Avenue Complex to fill their 10 free sandbags on Sunday
The Live 5 Weather team declared a First Alert Weather Day for Friday because of the heavy rain threat.
As it hits Cuba, Ian's storm surge "could raise water levels by as much as 9 to 14 feet above normal tide levels" in some areas, the hurricane center said.