Hurricane Helene made landfall along Florida’s Gulf Coast on Thursday night as a powerful Category 4 storm, bringing intense winds, heavy rainfall, and dangerous storm surges.
The storm quickly formed over the warm Gulf waters, with winds reaching 140 mph (225 kph), according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC).
About 45 miles (70 kms) from Tallahassee, Helene is considered to affect areas beyond its center. Governor Ron DeSantis urged northern Florida residents to evacuate because of flooding, road closures, and potential power outages there.
“You’re going to have hurricane force winds for probably 50 miles outside the eye of the storm,” DeSantis said in a Thursday evening news briefing. The storm is expected to bring up to 20 feet (6.1 meters) of storm surge in some coastal areas, particularly around Florida’s Big Bend.
The National Weather Service (NWS) has labeled this storm surge as “unsurvivable,” and local officials warned the residents saying , “This is not a survivable event for those in coastal or low-lying areas,” warned Jared Miller, the sheriff of Wakulla County.
States of emergency and massive evacuations
Due to the seriousness of Hurricane Helene, states of emergency have been issued in Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas, Virginia, and Alabama. Officials are urging millions in the storm’s path to take quick action to reduce the potential damage. As Helene moves inland, it is expected to weaken but still bring severe conditions, including heavy rains and strong winds.
In a news conference on Wednesday, the mayor of Tallahassee, John Dailey, warned that the storm could cause “unprecedented damage like nothing we have ever experienced before as a community.”
Before making landfall, parts of Florida were already experiencing the storm’s effects. In Fort Myers Beach, the water was 2 feet above normal earlier on Thursday. By Thursday evening, cities like Tampa and St. Petersburg recorded storm surges of 5 feet.
The storm is predicted to travel along the southeastern U.S., affecting states as far north as North Carolina. Emergency officials in these states are asking residents in flood-prone areas to seek higher ground.
“A storm like this, we’re seeing flooding where we have never seen it before,” said Jimmy Brissie, the emergency services director for Henderson County in North Carolina.
Climate change’s role and warnings ahead
Hurricane Helene’s rapid formation and intensification have been fueled by the unusually warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Climate scientists warn that global warming is causing more frequent and stronger hurricanes. Although no individual storm is directly caused by climate change, the rise in hurricane strength and frequency is connected to warmer oceans.
Phil Klotzbach, a hurricane researcher at Colorado State University, noted that Helene is one of the largest storms to hit the Gulf in recent years. “Since 1988, only three Gulf hurricanes were bigger than Helene’s predicted size,” Klotzbach said, referring to 2017’s Irma, 2005’s Wilma, and 1995’s Opal.
Helene is the eighth storm named in this year’s Atlantic hurricane season, which began in June. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) had already forecasted a busier hurricane season because of unusually high ocean temperatures.
Much of Helene’s power has been attributed to these exceptionally warm waters in the Gulf of Mexico, which have provided the energy needed for the storm to become so intense.
Before making landfall in the U.S., Helene had already caused significant damage in the Caribbean. The storm left over 160,000 people in western Cuba without power and forced hundreds to evacuate. In Mexico, Helene caused flooding and knocked down trees near the Yucatan Peninsula, disrupting life in cities like Cancún.
As Hurricane Helene continues to move inland, forecasters and emergency services are on high alert for the storm’s next moves.
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