Hurricane Helene made landfall Thursday night as a catastrophic Category 4 storm, packing 140 mph winds—the first such storm to hit Florida’s Big Bend region since records began in 1851. The hurricane struck near Perry, Florida, around 11:10 p.m. ET.
By 3 a.m. ET, it had weakened to a Category 1 with sustained winds of 80 mph as it moved toward Georgia. The National Weather Service in Tallahassee anticipates further weakening as Helene continues inland.
So far, at least one fatality in Florida has been linked to the hurricane, with fears of more casualties as rescue operations are delayed.
The storm forced the closure of schools, airports, and roadways across Florida, prompting over 70,000 evacuations in Franklin, Taylor, Liberty, and Wakulla counties.
Wakulla County Sheriff Jared Miller warned that this storm poses an unprecedented threat to coastal and low-lying areas.
Forecasters indicated that damaging winds would reach well inland across the southeastern U.S. The National Hurricane Center urged residents to stay sheltered, as conditions can rapidly deteriorate once the eye of the storm passes.
Helene is expected to turn northwest and slow over the Tennessee Valley on Friday and Saturday. In response to the hurricane, President Biden approved emergency declarations for Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Alabama to deploy federal resources.
AccuWeather’s Dan DePodwin described Helene as a “very dangerous hurricane” that could become a “once-in-a-generation storm” for parts of western South Carolina, North Carolina, and northern and eastern Georgia.
