Four years ago, a disaster planning project called "Hurricane Phoenix" imagined what the worst-case scenario would be for a hurricane hitting Tampa. The result looks a lot like some of the forecasts for the region as Hurricane Milton approaches.

Hurricane Milton remains a ferocious storm that could land a once-in-a-century direct hit on Tampa and St. Petersburg, engulfing the populous region with towering storm surges and turning debris from

Tampa, with a metropolitan area that is home to over 3 million people, has not had a direct hit by a major hurricane in more than 100 years.