Hurricane Milton updates: 16 dead across Florida in storm's aftermath

The storm surge forecast for Hurricane Milton has been revised higher by the National Hurricane Center.

Florida's west coast can expect a maximum of 10-15 feet in some areas, according to the NHC. Milton poses an "extremely serious" threat, the NHC said.

Winds are now clocking in at 180 mph, the NHC reported.

The removal of debris from Hurricane Helene will continue until Hurricane Milton’s winds reach tropical storm strength in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis said, noting that 663 total truckloads of debris have already removed.

Schools in at least 20 counties will be closed on Tuesday and many more will be closed on Wednesday as Hurricane Milton moves in.

There’s no fuel shortage in Florida, DeSantis said. Some gas stations have run out of fuel, but more is coming, he said.

-ABC News’ Darren Reynolds

Milton, currently a Category 5 hurricane with 175 mph winds, is located about 700 miles southwest of Tampa.

Hurricane Milton strengthened from a Category 1 hurricane to a Category 5 hurricane in just 10 hours.

Milton now ranks as the third-greatest 24-hour hurricane intensification by wind speed in the Atlantic Basin. (Records are based on data since the satellite-er began in the 1960s.) The only other hurricanes to intensify faster were Wilma in 2005 and Felix in 2007.

Milton is expected to remain a powerful Category 5 hurricane through Tuesday.

It’s forecast to weaken to a Category 3 on Wednesday before making landfall on Florida’s Gulf Coast late Wednesday or early Thursday.

Hurricane watches are in effect in Tampa, Sarasota, Fort Myers, Naples and Orlando.

Storm surge will be one of the biggest threats from Milton.

Hurricane Helene just brought a record 6 to 8 feet of storm surge to the Tampa Bay area, and Hurricane Milton is now forecast to smash that record with 8 to 12 feet of storm surge. Fort Myers could see 5 to 10 feet and Naples could get 4 to 7 feet of storm surge.

Milton will also bring very heavy rain, adding to the rainfall a separate system is dumping on Florida now.

A widespread 5 to 10 inches of rain is possible by the end of the week, with local amounts up to 15 inches, which could cause considerable urban and river flooding.

-ABC News’ Melissa Griffin

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis refused to take a call from Vice President Kamala Harris within the last several days about hurricane response because his team believes the call was politically motivated, according to a source close to the governor.

DeSantis staffers also said the governor has not spoken to President Joe Biden in at least the last few days.

DeSantis later said he was unaware the vice president had reached out. "No, I didn’t know she called me. I saw [the report], but I was not aware of that,” he said.

The governor also said he had not spoken to Biden but noted he was "thankful" that Biden "has approved what we asked for."

Harris hit back against the purported snub, calling it "utterly responsible" and "selfish" to play "political games" at a time of crisis.

"People are in desperate need of support right now and playing political games with this moment, in these crisis situations, these are the height of emergency situations, it's utterly irresponsible, and it is selfish," Harris told reporters before boarding Air Force Two on Monday afternoon.

The governor did speak with FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell on Sunday, and federal officials are continuing to work with state emergency managers to prepare for Hurricane Milton’s landfall.

DeSantis' refusal to take Harris' call was first reported by NBC News.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Monday that the administration is still working with state and local officials to make sure that teams are pre-positioned ahead of Milton’s landfall.

Editor's note: This post has been updated.

-ABC News’ Will McDuffie and Jay O’Brien