Florida To Have Major Power Outages, Flooding From Hurricane

7.5m Florida residents could be without power as Hurricane Dorian is expected to hit as a Category 4

• A new model predicts that 7.5 million Florida residents will lose power as a result of Hurricane Dorian 
• The storm's maximum sustained winds increased on Friday morning to near 110mph near the Bahamas
• Dorian became an extremely dangerous Category 4 storm on Friday night and is gaining momentum 
•  The Trump administration said it is preparing for Dorian's arrival by shipping supplies to affected areas
• Meteorologists say the storm could be comparable to Hurricane Andrew, which devastated Florida in 1992 
• Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency for all of Florida's 67 counties on Thursday 
• Some meteorologists warned that Dorian could hit as a Category 5 because it has developed an eye

Forecasters upgraded Hurricane Dorian to an 'extremely dangerous' Category 4 storm on Friday night as it has 'gained new strength' in recent hours. 

The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami claims Dorian, which powered toward Florida with increasing fury Friday, has maximum sustained winds near 130 mph.

It said  in an updated statement at 8:30 p.m. EDT Friday that hurricane hunter aircraft detected the change in strength recently.

The storm is centered about 400 miles east of the northwestern Bahamas. 

Some forecasters say there is a chance the storm will become the highest classification on the scale because Dorian has now developed an eye.

'Hurricane #Dorian has developed an eye...Expecting it to become a major hurricane today,' said meteorologist Ryan Maue on Twitter on Friday. 'Nothing currently stopping storm from reaching Category 5. There I said it.' 

KRQE meteorologist Christopher Nunley added: 'Hurricane Dorian developing an eye. Major hurricane likely today. Wouldn’t be surprised if Dorian intensifies into a Category 5 over the weekend. Florida, take this seriously, this is a life threatening hurricane.' 

Dorian is becoming more powerful as it passes the warm waters off of Florida's coast, and maximum sustained winds increased Friday morning to near 110 mph.

As of 8am on Friday, Dorian was about 260 miles east-northeast of the southern Bahamas. On Friday afternoon, the hurricane became a classified as a major Category 3 hurricane.  

As many as 10 million people will be caught in the crosshairs when it makes landfall in the US. 

The news comes not long after 7.5 million Florida residents were warned they could be left without power as a result of Dorian. 

A new model, from the University of Michigan, Industrial & Operations Engineering program, predicts at least 35 percent of the Sunshine State's population will lose electricity.   

By the time Dorian hits Florida, it is likely to hit as Category 4 or Category 5 storm. If it becomes a Category 5, Floridians will have to battle wind speeds of more than 156mph.

That makes the storm comparable to Hurricane Andrew, which was was the most destructive hurricane to ever hit Florida where it made landfall, with wind speeds as high as 165mph, killing 65 people and causing $27.3billion in damage. 

'[The hurricane is] going to impact the entirety of Florida, and residents need to be prepared,' Acting Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Pete Gaynor told CNN on Friday. 'So, take the time now...to understand what your local risk is."