ORLANDO, Fla. -- Hurricane Wilma is a little stronger and accelerating northeastward toward Florida Sunday night.

The latest projected path of Hurricane Wilma continues to show the storm pulling across the state by Monday at 8 a.m. as a possible Category 2 storm, with possible tropical storm-force winds reaching Orlando, according to Local 6 News meteorologist Tom Sorrells.

Orange County residents can expect tropical-storm force winds from 30 to 40 mph with the possibility of higher gusts. The hurricane should impact Orange County between 5 a.m. and 5 p.m bringing up to four inches of rain in some areas.

"It is still a very large storm and we are looking at a lot of wind with it," Local 6 News meteorologist Michele Cimino said Sunday. "We are looking at possible tropical storm-force winds as far north as Orlando as well as some hurricane-force winds in the southern parts of Central Florida."

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The storm began its northeast movement toward Florida Sunday with hurricane-force winds extending out 85 miles and tropical storm-force winds extending out 200 miles.

"You can see the movement already beginning to take it toward the northeast," Cimino said earlier Sunday. "Some of the good news for Central Florida is that it is going to interact with a frontal boundary that will start to push this thing to the south and keep it pretty much on the coordinates we have seen so far."

Wilma is expected to make landfall late Sunday or early Monday morning before 8 a.m. Once the storm hits the state, it is expected to move through in only a few hours.

Most of Central Florida can expect showers and thunderstorms for most of Sunday and Monday.

At 8 p.m., the center of Wilma was located near latitude 23.9 north, longitude 84.4 west or about 170 miles, 275 km, west-southwest of Key West Florida and about 225 miles, 365 km, southwest of the southwestern coast of the Florida peninsula.

Gov. Bush Asks For Disaster Declaration

With Hurricane Wilma approaching, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has written his brother, President George W. Bush, asking that the state be granted a major disaster declaration for 14 counties.

The southern half of the state is under a hurricane warning, and an estimated 160,000 residents have been told to evacuate.

Gov. Bush declared a state of emergency Saturday.

Watches, Warnings

A hurricane warning remains in effect for all of the Florida keys, including the Dry Tortugas and Florida Bay, along the Florida west coast from Longboat Key southward, and along the Florida east coast from Titusville southward, including Lake Okeechobee.

A tropical storm warning remains in effect along the Florida west coast north of Longboat Key to Steinhatchee River, and along the Florida east coast north of Titusville to Flagler Beach.

A tropical storm watch remains in effect along the east coast of Florida from north of Flagler Beach to Fernandina Beach.

Floridians Prepare

About 160 people were in a Miami shelter, a hospital was evacuated, state officials monitored gas supplies and workers assembled truckloads of water, ice and meals for relief efforts planned once the storm makes it expected pass over the state Monday.

"The time of preparing is rapidly moving into time of action as people are evacuating," Florida emergency management director Craig Fugate said.

Federal Emergency Management Agency spokesman Butch Kinerney said resources ranging from dozens of military helicopters to 13.2 million ready-to-eat meals were standing by.

"We're ready for Wilma and, whatever the storm brings, we're set to go," Kinerney said.

Officials in the island chain of the Florida Keys issued a mandatory evacuation order Saturday, but many people ignored that mandate. Collier County also urged evacuations for coastal areas, such as Marco Island and parts of Naples.

To the north, Wilma's outer rainbands caused hip-deep flooding in some neighborhoods in the Fort Lauderdale area, forcing people out of at least 50 apartments and houses.

More than 5 inches of rain fell in that area, with flooding mostly contained to the streets in the 2-square mile area, Broward County and National Weather Service officials said.

Lower Keys Medical Center in Key West was evacuated of its eight patients on Saturday, with some going to the Florida mainland or as far as Alabama.

State and federal officials said they had supplies and personnel outside of the areas expected to get hit. Gas supplies were also adequate, they said.

Four to 8 inches of rain was expected in southern Florida through Tuesday, with up to a foot in some areas. Category 2 hurricanes can be accompanied by storm surge flooding of 12-14 feet. Battering waves could be on top of that.

Southwest Florida residents, some still rebuilding from Charley, made late preparations for Wilma amid fear and frustration.

Record Storm

Saturday became a historic and meaningful day for hurricane trackers and weather buffs when Tropical Storm Alpha formed south off the Dominican Republic as a record 22nd named storm for the Atlantic season.

It marked the first time forecasters had to turn to the Greek alphabet for names in almost 60 years of naming storms.

The previous record of 21 named storms had stood since 1933.

Watch Local 6 meteorologist Tom Sorrells, Larry Mowry and Michele Cimino for your latest forecast.