FLORIDA - After hitting Cuba on Tuesday, Hurricane Ian has made its way to Florida. Approaching Category 5 status, the storm began impacting the Western coast of the state earlier this morning.

According to a report from The New York Times, Hurricane Ian was just short of the Category 5 threshold with maximum sustained winds of 155 miles per hour, making it one of the most powerful storms to make landfall in the United States in decades.

So far, more than 2.5 million people in Florida are under an evacuation order, but Governor Ron DeSantis said this morning that it was too late to evacuate for those who had not yet done so and urged them to shelter in place.

Some of the latest forecasts show the storm surge could hit up to 18 feet in a 50-mile stretch from Englewood to Bonita Beach, said another report from The Wall Street Journal. The hurricane was expected to cause tropical-force winds extending out 175 miles and dumping as much as two feet of rain.

As the storm moves over Florida, industry members are preparing for the effects.

“In Pompano Beach, we are monitoring the situation,” said Alan Lieberman, Senior Vice President of Southern Specialties. “We are seeing moderate rain and winds with forecasts for heavier rain later. We are not sending any trucks out. We don’t expect any interruption in power. Our team will meet several times each day to evaluate conditions and advise customers.”

Other growers around Plant City, Tampa, and other growing regions are also preparing for the storm today. There are still many unknowns, as some Florida suppliers tell us, so the impact is, as expected, uncertain and will be specific to each individual operation in the hurricane’s path, depending upon commodity and location.

As the storm advances, AndNowUKnow will share the latest news and updates from the industry.