Hurricane Helene To Bring Potentially Devastating Florida Storm Surge, Dangerous Flash Flooding, Winds Inland
By Jonathan Erdman And Chris Dolceless than an hour ago
At a Glance
Helene is currently hammering Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula.
Helene will intensify and grow in size over the Gulf through Thursday.
Helene's Florida landfall will occur Thursday night, but impacts will arrive well in advance.
Potentially devastating storm surge, damaging winds and flash flooding from rain are all Florida threats.
Damaging winds, serious flash flooding and a tornado threat will push well inland in parts of the Southeast into Friday.
Where is it now: Helene became the fifth hurricane of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season late Wednesday morning. It is centered just under 500 miles south-southwest of Tampa, Florida, and is tracking north. Maximum sustained winds are 80 mph.
The storm is drenching parts of Mexico's Yucatan and western Cuba. Wind gusts over 50 mph have been measured at Isla Mujeres, an island just northeast of Cancún.

Meanwhile, bands of heavy rain have developed well ahead of Helene over parts of the Southeast U.S., prompting occasional flash flood warnings as far north as southwest Virginia.

Watches and warnings in effect: A hurricane warning is in effect from Florida's Big Bend and Nature Coast into southwest Georgia, including Tallahassee. Storm surge warnings extend from Indian Pass southward to Flamingo, including Tampa Bay and Charlotte Harbor.
As shown in the map below, tropical storm warnings cover most of the rest of Florida and extend into coastal South Carolina. Tropical storm watches extend through the rest of Georgia and other parts of South Carolina and western North Carolina.
These alerts mean hurricane, tropical storm and storm surge conditions are either expected (warnings) or possible (watches) in these areas within the next 36 to 48 hours.
Interests in the warned areas should implement their hurricane plans and heed any advice from local emergency managers.

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