(This story was updated to accurately reflect the most current information.)
As Florida prepares for the arrival of Hurricane Helen e and the potential for heavy rainfall and minor coastal flooding in the Pensacola area, hazardous weather conditions are prompting officials to make several closures.
The National Weather Service Mobile Office is forecasting marine and coastal impacts from Hurricane Helene including dangerously high surf, deadly rip currents, strong winds and high waves. The weather is expected to click in high gear beginning late tonight and into early Friday morning.
The Navarre Beach Pier will close at 7 p.m. tonight due to expected hazardous weather conditions. The pier is expected to reopen at 8 a.m. Friday morning.
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Escambia County Public Schools announced that all schools and district offices will be closed on Thursday. School officials feared that high winds could endanger school bus travel, and also noted the potential for heavy rains and significant tornadic activity.
As of 4: 30 p.m., Santa Rosa County District schools canceled all after-school activities Thursday including sporting events, but said school would remain open.
Two area high school football games have been postponed due to possible weather conditions from Hurricane Helene.
Both Milton and Pensacola were slated to play teams from Bay County, which has shut down school on Friday.
Milton will now host Mosley at 6 p.m. on Monday, still at Haywood Hanna Panther Stadium. Pensacola hosts Bay now on Monday at 7 p.m. at Jim Scoggins Stadium. Both games were confirmed by Milton head coach Kelly Gillis and Pensacola head coach Wade McKinney.
The only other known change for Week 6 of the high school football season in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties was moving the Tate-Navarre football game from Thursday to Friday. That game is slated for 7 p.m. at Pete Gindl Stadium.
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Naval Air Station Pensacola closed the base for public visitation on Thursday including the National Naval Aviation Museum and the Pensacola Lighthouse.
Service members assigned to commands in the NAS Pensacola area are advised to contact their chain of command for reporting procedures. Civilian employees and service members and their families are encouraged to monitor localand trusted news sources for weather information as well as NAS Pensacola’s social media pages for installation closure information.
Gulf Islands National Seashore closed the Fort Pickens and Okaloosa areas to day use in preparation of the hurricane. Reservations at Fort Pickens campground are cancelled through Friday.
Pensacola Bay City Ferry cancelled the Thursday Sunset Cruise and the Friday ferry service, but expect to return to normal operation in time for the 5:30 p.m. Friday Sunset Cruise.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Navarre Pier, NAS Pensacola to close ahead of hurricane
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