Hurricane Helene live updates: Track storm path as Florida braces for landfall amid fears of catastrophic damage to homes and businesses

Helene was pelting Mexico’s Caribbean coastal resorts from Cozumel to Cancun with rain, high waves and strong winds early Wednesday – a sign of things to come for many residents in Florida’s coastal regions.

Mara Lezama, the governor of the coastal state of Quintana Roo, shared photos of downed trees and rain-swept streets.

Videos showed the normally placid, turquoise waters off the island of Cozumel being whipped into angry waves that broke over the seawall of the coastal boulevard.

In Cancun, one woman posted a video in which she described the weather as a ‘monsoon’ and described the beach as ‘gone’.

‘I’m out of towels. My bed is now an island,’ she added.

Heavy waves have also threatened to worsen the resort’s ongoing problem with beach erosion.

John Dailey, the mayor of Tallahassee, Florida’s capital city that is in the direct path of Helene, has said the hurricane could be the strongest storm to ever make a direct hit on his city.

Helene could produce ‘unprecedented damage like nothing we have ever experienced before as a community,’ Dailey told reporters on Wednesday.

Marc Weinberg, Chief Meteorologist at WDRB in Louisville, KY, has shared footage of the aftermath of a 19-foot storm surge following Hurricane Michael in 2018.

‘You can see why the word “unsurvivable” is being used to describe the potential surge from Helene,’ he writes on X.

The storm surge caused by Helene is predicted to reach 20 feet in some coastal regions.

The National Hurricane Center has released this map showing the earliest reasonable arrival time of tropical storm winds.

Southern parts of Florida could see such winds as early as 8 a.m. CDT on Thursday, according to the map.

As MLB games have been delayed, so too have NASA missions, with the space agency saying it has pushed back the launch of its Crew-9 mission with SpaceX due to the in-coming storm.

SpaceX’s upcoming Crew Dragon mission, a routine flight called Crew-9, is expected to send one NASA astronaut and a Russian cosmonaut to the International Space Station.

Although Helene is moving through the Gulf of Mexico and expected to impact the northwest of region of Florida, it is large enough that high winds and heavy rain are expected in the Cape Canaveral region, from where the mission is set to be launched.

The Crew-9 mission was originally stated to be launched no earlier than August 18, but was pushed back a month to spend more time analyzing issues with Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft, which remains docked at the station.

NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov are to launch aboard the Dragon spacecraft to the ISS, on what will be the ninth crew rotation mission with SpaceX under the space agency’s Commercial Crew Program.

Energy facilities along the US Gulf Coast scaled back operations and evacuated some production sites as Hurricane Helene is expected to bring catastrophic winds and storm surges to the northeastern Gulf Coast.

About 29 per cent of crude production and 17 per cent of natural gas output in the US Gulf of Mexico have been shut in response to Helene, the US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said Wednesday.

Offshore production in the US Gulf of Mexico accounts for approximately 1.8 million barrels per day or about 15 per cent of the nation’s total crude output.

Disruptions have the potential to affect US oil supplies, leading to upward pressure on prices for domestic oil and offshore crude grades.

Gov. Henry McMaster declared a state of emergency in South Carolina yesterday.

He said Hurricane Helene is going to be a dangerous storm even as the state avoids the brunt of the impacts.

Wednesday’s declaration allows the state to put in place emergency plans to coordinate between agencies and the federal government and opens the doors for counties and local governments to request assistance.

The coast and much of the western half of South Carolina is expecting tropical storm-force winds; a flash flood watch is also in effect.

Parts of the mountains in extreme northern South Carolina could see up to 15 inches of rain, the National Weather Service said.

‘Although South Carolina will likely avoid the brunt of Hurricane Helene’s impacts, the storm is still expected to bring dangerous flooding, high winds, and isolated tornadoes to many parts of the state,’ McMaster said in a statement.

Several agencies, including the National Weather Service (NWS), are warning of a storm surge. But what exactly does that mean?

Storm Surges occur when powerful winds push water onshore, causing a rise in water levels – and therefore flooding in coastal areas.

Heavy rains and large waves can add to the build up of water.

The NWS has released a diagram demonstrating storm surge levels, showing that a 12-foot storm surge can reach the second floor of many buildings.

The Weather Channel has warned that Helene’s storm surge is expected to reach up to 20 feet in some areas.

The National Hurricane Center’s Storm Surge Unit has urged residents along the west coast of the Florida Peninsula and Florida Big Bend to follow orders to evacuate, warning that the storm surge will be ‘life-threatening’.

Major League Baseball has announced the postponement of the scheduled games between the Atlanta Braves and the New York Mets at Truist Park in Atlanta.

The teams were set to play on Wednesday and Thursday nights, but have been pushed back to a doubleheader on Monday, September 30 due to the weather.

The first game will begin at 1.10pm ET and the second will start 40 minutes after the last out in the first game, the statement said.

‘To all of our fans throughout Braves Country that will be impacted by Hurricane Helene, please stay safe,’ The Braves wrote on X.

Helene has left a trail of destruction en route to the United States.

It swamped parts of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula on Wednesday, flooding streets and toppling trees as it passed offshore and brushed the resort city of Cancun.

The storm formed Tuesday in the Caribbean Sea.

In Cuba, the government preventively shut off power in some communities as waves as high as 16 feet slammed Cortes Bay.

In the Cayman Islands, schools closed and residents pumped water from flooded homes.

Helene is expected to be a major hurricane – meaning a Category 3 or higher – when it makes landfall tonight.

As Helene strengthens, forecaster warn that Tropical Storm Isaac – which formed yesterday in the Atlantic – is expected to strengthen as it moves eastward across the open ocean, possibly becoming a hurricane by the end of the week.

In the Pacific, former Hurricane John reformed Wednesday as a tropical storm and was strengthening as it threatened areas of Mexico’s western coast. Officials posted hurricane warnings for southwestern Mexico.

John hit the country’s southern Pacific coast late Monday, killing at least two people, triggering mudslides, and damaging homes and trees. It grew into a Category 3 hurricane in a matter of hours and made landfall east of Acapulco. It reemerged over the ocean after weakening inland.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has urged residents to ‘not get wedded to the “cone”‘ – warning that ‘hazards such as tornados, flooding, and storm surge can create dangerous conditions far beyond the cone.’

In other words, he has warned people against assuming they are safe just because their home or business is not in the direct path of the storm – or the ‘cone’ shown on weather maps.

Residents should also check official warnings issue over other hazards.

Hurricane Helene is expected to make landfall in Florida on Thursday evening.

Of the state’s 67 counties, 61 are under a state of emergency, DeSantis said. Mandatory evacuations are in effect in parts of at least 20 counties.

Officials have issued dire warnings, pleading with residents in coastal areas along the hurricane’s path to evacuate ahead of catastrophic winds and a potentially deadly storm surge (the wall of seawater pushed on land by hurricane-force winds), that could rise to 20 feet (6.1 meters) in some spots.

‘This is not a survivable event for those in coastal or low- lying areas,’ said Jared Miller, the sheriff of Wakulla County, where Helene is forecast to make landfall. ‘Please heed the evacuation orders in place as time is running out to do so.’

Helene roared across the Gulf of Mexico, picking up power from the warm ocean water. It is forecast to make landfall in Florida’s panhandle Thursday evening, packing sustained wind speeds of up to 156 miles per hour, forecasters said.

‘For those in the path, that unfortunately means catastrophic wind impacts,’ National Hurricane Center Deputy Director Jamie Rhome said.

Hurricane Helene is set to strike Florida’s Gulf Coast within hours, threatening an ‘unsurvivable’ storm surge that would leave catastrophic damage and could deluge cities and swallow homes.

Helene could roar ashore as a Category 4 hurricane by tonight, with wind speeds of up to 130mph after spending days strengthening in the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, the National Hurricane Center warned.

Forecasters predict Helene could bring storm surges of up to 20 feet (6 meters) and warned they could be particularly ‘catastrophic and life-threatening’ in Florida’s Apalachee Bay. Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency ahead of the storm’s arrival.

Hello and welcome to DailyMail.com’s live coverage of Hurricane Helene as it fast approaches Florida.

The National Hurricane Center warned Helene is likely to reach Category 4 when it makes landfall after strengthening in the Gulf of Mexico.

Governor Ron DeSantis has declared a state of emergency ahead of the storm’s arrival as forecasters predict storm surges of up to 20 feet (6 meters).

State officials say the damage could be unprecedented and catastrophic with residents scrambling to reach higher ground.

Stick with our coverage as we track Helene’s movements and bring you the latest developments on the ground in Flordia.