pounding rain and storm surge. #HurricaneMilton #Category5 #Florida #Sarasota and #FortMyers were trending terms all day Wednesday as Floridians prepped for the storm or evacuated the state.

Select a gauge on the map for more details ... p.m. and 2 a.m. ET near Sarasota, generating catastrophic storm surge and life-threatening flooding across west-central Florida.

A man walks through storm surge ... flooding, with up to 30 inches possible in some areas, the National Hurricane Center said. About 500 people were rescued from flooded homes in Sarasota, Florida ...