The Muse is working to provide live team coverage of Hurricane Milton and its impacts on Palm Beach County. Check back for updates.

Hurricane Milton became a Category 5 Hurricane Monday afternoon. The hurricane is predicted to reach Tampa Bay this Wednesday, Oct. 9, and is expected to directly impact a majority of Central Florida with sustained wind speeds of up to 160 mph, according to USA Today. Areas of West Palm Beach are forecasted to see 5-10 inches of rain. Although the hurricane has not yet made landfall, students, such as band sophomore Hugh Jackson, have already noted its impacts such as the low pressure system preceding the major storm.

“On the way to school today, (there) was lots of rain and a little bit of flooding,” Jackson said. “(There were) one or two inches of rain on some of the roads.”

Preceding Hurricane Milton’s arrival, a low-pressure system has settled over Florida. According to the American Geosciences Institute, an area with low pressure has winds that blow inwards, causing air to rise and form storms. The impact of the wind and rain on traffic from these storms has affected student drivers like communications senior Aidan Smith, who says it has almost doubled his drive time.

“It’s been awful,” Smith said. “Every day I’ve been trying to get to school, it’s taken around an hour. (It) usually takes 25 to 30 minutes, and it just feels more dangerous on the roads in general.”

As people prepare for the storm, lines have formed at gas stations and stores have begun to run out of supplies such as bottled water, according to social studies teacher Widnie Sainvil. However, Ms. Sainvil feels prepared for the upcoming storm.

“I’ve lived in Florida my entire life,” Ms. Sainvil said. “In middle school, there were three hurricanes back to back in one year, so I feel like I’m a pro (professional) at hurricanes.”

At around 2 p.m., the School District of Palm Beach County announced that all District-operated schools and offices would be closed on Wednesday, Oct. 9, and Thursday, Oct. 10, due to severe weather conditions from Hurricane Milton. 

This is a developing story.