Here are the top five latest headlines and updates on tampabay.com.

HURRICANE MICHAEL INTENSIFIES AS IT CLOSES IN ON FLORIDA PANHANDLE

Gaining frightening fury overnight, Hurricane Michael closed in Wednesday on the Florida Panhandle with potentially catastrophic winds of 150 mph, the most powerful storm on record ever to menace the stretch of fishing towns, military bases and spring-break beaches. With more than 375,000 people up and down the Gulf Coast warned to clear out, the hurricane's leading edge began lashing the white-sand shoreline with tropical storm-force winds, rain and rising seas before daybreak, hours before Michael's center was expected to blow ashore.

STORM SURGE AND HEAVY WIND A CONCERN FOR TAMPA BAY

While the Florida Panhandle prepares for Hurricane Michael, with its 145 mph winds and potential for 9-12 feet of storm surge, Tampa Bay's experience with the hurricane will be starkly different. Still nearly 250 miles away from the coast of Tampa Bay as of early Wednesday morning, Michael will still spread storm surge throughout the region and push rain chances to nearly 60-70 percent in some areas. But for the most part, the forecast will remain rather fortunate for Tampa Bay.

LIVE COVERAGE: THE LATEST ON HURRICANE MICHAEL

Hurricane Michael is roaring down on the Florida Panhandle after strengthening into a Category 4 hurricane with 145 mph winds. Tampa Bay will avoid the worst of the storm but is expected to feel its effects. Stay with tampabay.com for continuing coverage. We've got the latest on current conditions, as well as live radar, a storm tracker, hurricane guide, extended Tampa Bay forecast, dispatches from reporters and photographers in the field, hurricane resources, story links and much more.

IN PORT JOE, FEAR AND WAITING FOR HURRICANE MICHAEL

On the edge of this small city, which sits just west of Apalachicola, straight in Hurricane Michael's path, police are making frequent passes. The storm surge here could reach 13 feet, according to forecasts. Wind is already all you can hear downtown. Rain is pelting sideways and everything — the sky, the road, the water — is gray. There are still several boats in the marina at Port St. Joe, protected by a short hook of land. Rex McCormick, 25, and Alyssa Graziano, 23, came down to the marina to see the edge of Hurricane Michael. "If you ain't already out, you ain't going nowhere," he said.

DUKE ENERGY EXPECTS UP TO 200,000 OUTAGES DUE TO HURRICANE MICHAEL

Tampa Bay utilities are bracing as Hurricane Michael is expected to make landfall Wednesday in Florida's Panhandle. Duke Energy Florida, which serves the Panhandle, expects between 100,000 and 200,000 power outages as a result of the hurricane, according to spokeswoman Peveeta Persaud. Power restoration is expected to take over a week, and Duke has 7,000 crew members deployed to the area to assist in the effort.

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