NOAA warns Hurricane Helene will cause flooding for miles inland even after landfall

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration doesn't generally send out news releases about current weather events. But Hurricane Helene , currently strengthening in the Gulf of Mexico on its way to slam into Florida , also poses a special threat to areas away from the coast, the agency said Wednesday.

"Helene’s flooding rainfall and high winds won’t be limited to the Gulf Coast and are expected to travel hundreds of miles inland," NOAA said .

Hurricane Helene grew from a disturbance to an unusually large hurricane with startling speed and shows signs of peaking as a Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 130-156 mph before landfall, AccuWeather meteorologists said Wednesday.

Winds from the storm extend as far as 275 miles from its center and most of Florida's west coast is under a storm surge watch or warning. As of the National Hurricane Center's 5 p.m. update, a catastrophic, life-threatening storm surge of up to 20 feet is possible in the Big Bend area , with storm surges expected to be up to 15 feet in areas around the region, and some of those places are still recovering from Hurricane Debby just weeks ago.

"The major flood risk includes the urban areas around Tallahassee, metro Atlanta and western North Carolina, including Asheville," NOAA said. "Recent rainfall in these areas, especially the southern Appalachians, have left the grounds saturated and the river tributaries running high."

Storm total rainfall amounts in the Southeastern U.S. and up into the southern Appalachians region are forecast to be up to 18 inches.

"Additional rainfall from Helene will exacerbate the existing flood risk. Extreme rainfall rates (i.e., torrential downpour) across the mountainous terrain of the southern Appalachians will likely inundate communities in its path with flash floods, landslides, and cause extensive river and stream flooding," the agency said. "Gusty winds, combined with saturated ground, will also raise the risk of falling trees that can cause loss of life, property damage, blocked roads, and lead to power outages."

Flooding from extreme rainfall is the deadliest direct cause of tropical cyclone deaths in the U.S. over the past decade, NOAA said.

Highest likelihood of heavy rain, flash flooding from Helene is in Florida and 400 miles inland

As of the Wednesday afternoon update, the areas with the highest potential for total rainfall from Helene are the Florida Panhandle around and west of Tallahassee, and a large area some 400 miles inland in northern Georgia, northwestern South Carolina, and southwestern North Carolina.

A large swath of the southeastern U.S. from Florida up into Virginia is at a high-to-moderate risk of flash flooding , according to forecasters from the National Hurricane Center.

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: NOAA warns Hurricane Helene will cause flooding for miles inland even after landfall