Hurricane Milton Could Cost Disney Up to $200 Million As the Storm Reaches Florida

Practically all of Florida will be heavily impacted by Hurricane Milton, which is already pummeling the state's west coast as a Category 3 storm.

Walt Disney World, a staple of Florida, won't be exempt. Asides from the impact the storm might have on its vast infrastructure in Orlando, the company is also set to take a heavy financial loss as a result of having to close its theme parks and the cancellations that might ensue in the aftermath of Milton.

Goldman Sachs analysts projected that the anticipated closures and additional disruptions will reduce the earnings of Disney's parks division by between $150 million and $200 million, according to Forbes. The parks closed on Wednesday and could extend the measure through Friday. Along with related cancellations, attendance to the parks could decline by 6%.

Milton is expected to make landfall on Wednesday night. The National Hurricane Center is already warning people in the west coast to "stay inside and away from windows." "Devastating hurricane-force winds are expected along portions of the west coast of Florida," the agency added, saying that Milton will likely remain a hurricane while it crosses the state.

The storm is expected to continue bringing heavy rainfall on Thursday, increasing the risk of "catastrophic and life-threatening flash and urban flooding along with moderate to major river flooding, especially in areas where coastal and inland flooding combine to increase the overall flood threat."

Milton intensified to a Category 5 storm twice over the week, raising questions about how strong it could become. The National Hurricane Center reported sustained winds reaching 180 mph, pushing Milton towards what meteorologists refer to as Maximum Potential Intensity (MPI), which is estimated at around 195 mph with an atmospheric pressure near 900 MB.

Even though the storm weakened, the National Hurricane Center is still warning of a "large area of destructive storm surge, with highest inundations of 10 feet or greater" along "a portion of the west-central coast of Florida.