Topline
Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend as a Category 4 storm late Thursday, knocking out power in over two million homes and businesses and causing at least six deaths in Florida and Georgia before barreling toward North Carolina and the Tennessee Valley Friday.
A boat washed ashore as storm surge from Hurricane Helene affects Gulfport, Florida Sept. 26, 2024.
Key Facts
The center of Helene, which has been downgraded to a tropical storm since making landfall, was located about 30 miles northeast of Athens, Georgia, as of 7 a.m. EDT Friday, the National Hurricane Center said, with maximum sustained winds of 60 mph.
Helene is expected to bring “damaging gusty winds and life-threatening flooding” to the Southeast and southern Appalachian mountains, with total rain accumulation up to 20 inches in isolated areas.
Tornadoes are possible Friday through parts of eastern Georgia, the Carolinas and southern Virginia, and tropical storm conditions are expected to persist along the Georgia and South Carolina coasts.
Mandatory evacuations have been ordered in Asheville and McDowell counties in North Carolina as rivers and reservoirs are expected to swell from heavy rainfall, and multiple schools in Kentucky and Indiana will be closed Friday as winds and heavy rain pelt the region.
A storm surge warning remains in effect for parts of Florida, including Tampa Bay, and from Indian Pass to Apalachicola in the Panhandle.
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Key Background
Hurricane Helene first made landfall at around 11:10 p.m. EDT near the city of Perry in Florida’s Big Bend area. The storm moved through Florida and Georgia so far, leaving at least six people dead, ABC News reported. At lease one person has died in Florida, one in North Carolina and four in Georgia. Millions are without power. A flash flood emergency has been issued in Atlanta, where social media video shows dramatic rescues.
What Is Storm Surge?
Storm surge is the “abnormal rise of water generated by a storm” that exceeds the normal tide, according to the National Weather Service. Surges are caused by strong onshore winds from a tropical storm or hurricane, and storm surge from tropical cyclones is the leading cause of fatalities from hurricanes, the National Hurricane Center said.
Is Helene Impacting Airlines?
The Tampa International Airport closed to the public at 2 a.m. EDT Thursday in anticipation of Hurricane Helene and “plans to resume services when it is safe to do so Friday.”
Tangent
Helene is the eighth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season and comes weeks after Francine made landfall as a Category 2 in Louisiana on Sept. 11. Forecasters this year predicted the busiest storm season (from June 1 to Nov. 30) the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has ever forecasted—up to 25 named storms and 13 hurricanes—but the season hasn’t been as active as predicted so far.