“Unsurvivable” storm surge moves quickly Hurricane Helen The storm is hurtling toward Florida. Forecasters said Thursday that strong winds, heavy rain and flash flooding are also possible hundreds of miles inland across much of the southeastern U.S.
AP Reports Helen It has now become a major hurricane. The storm is expected to make landfall on the Big Bend coast of northwest Florida late Thursday night into Friday morning, meaning it will be upgraded to Category 2.
The storm is so strong it could become a hurricane about 90 miles north of the Georgia-Florida state line, with rain expected as far inland as Tennessee, Kentucky and Indiana.
As of early Thursday, hurricane and flood warnings extended far up the coast into south-central Georgia, and the governors of Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas all declared states of emergency in their states.
The storm was expected to make landfall in the Big Bend region, where southwest Florida meets the peninsula, according to Jack Beven, a senior hurricane expert at the National Hurricane Center in Miami, The Associated Press reported.
Residents load sandbags onto their cars in preparation for possible flooding as Tropical Storm Helene heads toward the state's Gulf Coast, in Tallahassee, Florida, on Sept. 25, 2024. Helene is currently forecast to become a major hurricane, potentially bringing deadly storm surge, flooding rains and destructive hurricane-force winds to parts of Florida's west coast. (Shawn Rayford/Getty)
“Regardless of how strong it is, this is a very significant storm,” Bebben said. “It will have widespread impacts.”
The National Weather Service in Tallahassee predicted a storm surge of up to 20 feet, warning that it could be “catastrophic and unsurvivable,” especially in Florida's Apalachee Bay.
He added that strong winds and heavy rain also pose a danger, Breitbart News reported.
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“If this projection were to come to fruition, it would be a nightmare flood scenario for Apalachee Bay,” the office said. “Please, please, please take evacuation orders seriously!”
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency for 61 of Florida's 67 counties ahead of the storm's landfall.
“Florida is preparing for widespread impacts from Hurricane Helen,” he said.
