Hurricane Ian is now an 'extremely dangerous' Category 4 storm, bringing life-threatening conditions as it moves toward Florida

• Warnings as Hurricane Ian moves towards Florida after pounding Cuba.
• It strengthened to an "extremely dangerous" Category 4 storm on Wednesday morning.

Hurricane Ian strengthened to an "extremely dangerous" Category 4 storm on Wednesday morning as it moved towards Florida, where it will bring life-threatening conditions, the National Hurricane Center said.

The hurricane was around 77 miles from west southwest of Naples, Florida, at 5.00 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, the NHC said.

The center of the hurricane is expected to move over central Florida on Wednesday night, it said.

The hurricane is not expected to weaken before it hits Florida, the NHC added, due to its large size. It is likely to weaken as it moves over the state.

The NHC warned that it will likely bring "life-threatening storm surge, catastrophic winds, and flooding."

Follow Insider's live updates on Hurricane Ian here.