(NewsNation) — Hurricane Helene officially made landfall Thursday night, leaving behind a catastrophic storm surge and flooding along the Gulf Coast, but weakened to a tropical storm by 5 a.m. Friday as it headed inland. At least four people are dead from storm-related deaths.
The Category 4 storm threatened Florida’s coast with potentially “unsurvivable” storm surges. Forecasters warned that the enormous storm could create a “nightmare” surge in coastal areas and bring dangerous winds and rain across much of the southeastern U.S.
As Helene passed through south Georgia, the winds slowed to 70 mph, downgrading the hurricane to a tropical storm, around 5 a.m. EDT Friday. All hurricane warnings have been canceled but tropical storm warnings remain for south-central Georgia and southeast Florida Big Bend counties, according to the National Weather Service.
Dangerous storm surge warnings continue for Wakulla, Jefferson, Taylor and Dixie counties.
By 2 a.m. EDT Friday, Helene slowed to a Category 1 with winds of 90 mph, heading north-northeast. Further weakening is expected as the storm moves more inland. Florida and Georgia should expect gusty winds throughout the morning, according to the National Weather Service.
A person died from a falling sign on a Tampa roadway during the storm, according to Gov. Ron DeSantis, and two others died in a possible tornado in south Georgia as the storm approached, according to the Associated Press. A fourth person in Jeff Davis County, Georgia, died, according to local news outlet WSAV.
The National Hurricane Center warned of hurricane-force winds as well as life-threatening flash and urban flooding. Heavy rainfall and damaging winds continue to threaten inland areas.
Around 1 a.m. EDT, Helene was a Category 2 with winds of 110 mph near Valdosta, Georgia.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis emphasized the storm’s strength throughout several news conferences Thursday.
“It is moving fast,” DeSantis said. “More rainfall is, of course, expected and it could lead to significant storm surge in our coastal areas.”
Storm surges and rising water are also expected along the state’s west coast.
“To the extent it is tracking east and mirroring more of an Idalia track rather than a direct hit on Tallahassee, that is going to impact the extent of the damage,” he said. “This area has not had a major hurricane hit in quite some time and certainly, no one in recent memory has seen a storm of this magnitude that has hit.”
Vice President Kamala Harris urged people in the path of Hurricane Helene “to take this storm very seriously.”
“So, the president and I, of course, are monitoring the case and the situation closely, and we urge everyone who is watching at this very moment to take this storm very seriously, and please follow the guidance of your local officials,” Harris said. “And President Biden and I, of course, will continue to work closely with state and local officials to ensure that everyone is safe, and to protect communities before, during, and after the storm.”
Hurricane Helene latest stats
The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Helene roared ashore around 11:10 p.m. EDT near the Perry, Florida, in the Big Bend area of the state’s Gulf Coast. It had maximum sustained winds of 140 mph (225 kph). By 1 a.m. EDT, the storm downgraded to a Category 2 with winds of 110 mph, the eyewall entering southern Georgia near Valdosta.
Officials have forecast storm surges of up to 20 feet (6 meters) and warned they could be particularly “catastrophic and unsurvivable” in Florida’s Apalachee Bay.
Hurricane warnings and flash flood warnings extended far beyond the coast into northern Georgia and western North Carolina.
Helene has left more than 1.3 million Floridians without power, according to the Florida Power Outages Map, the number of outages increasing throughout the morning.
“All of these things combined make this a very serious storm,” Florida Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez told NewsNation.
Could the Fujiwhara effect influence Helene’s path?
What safety, emergency measures are in place for Hurricane Helene?
After making landfall in Florida’s Big Bend area in the northwest part of the state, forecasters expect Helene to turn northwestward and slow down over the Tennessee Valley on Friday and Saturday.
More than 20 Florida counties remained under voluntary or mandatory evacuation orders as of Friday morning, and DeSantis declared a state of emergency for most of Florida. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster did the same, as wind damage is forecast to extend far beyond the storm’s center and inland across the southeastern U.S.
An extreme wind warning is in place for Georgia cities Valdosta, Thomasville and Quitman. “Treat these imminent extreme winds as if a tornado was approaching and move immediately to an interior room or shelter NOW!” the National Weather Service in Tallahassee wrote on X.
“There is a danger of catastrophic and unsurvivable storm surge for Apalachee Bay … this forecast, if realized, is a nightmare surge scenario for Apalachee Bay,” the NWS said, pleading with residents to “please, please, please take any evacuation orders seriously.”
Anyone in northern Florida who needs to seek alternative shelter should act now, DeSantis said.
“Every minute that goes by brings us closer to having conditions that are simply too dangerous to navigate,” DeSantis said.
Tampa International Airport, St. Pete–Clearwater International Airport and Tallahassee International Airport are closed along with the Skyway Bridge over Tampa Bay. Four NFL stadiums have been designated as extreme weather shelters: New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium; Lumen Field in Washington, Acrisure Stadium in Pennsylvania and Florida’s Raymond James Stadium.
One man named Jay lives on his sailboat and said that’s where he plans to weather the hurricane.
“Anything that happens was meant to be,” Jay told NewsNation’s Ryan Bass. “It’s all preordained. I believe God has got our back. He looks out for all of us. He loves us all. If I wind up on land and my boat winds up crushed, then that just means I wasn’t meant to be on it.”
How could Hurricane Helene affect other regions in Florida?
The storm surge causes normally dry areas near the coast to be flooded by rising waters moving inland from the shoreline. The destructive Hurricane Ian in 2022 had storm surge levels of 10-15 feet above ground level. Helene, meanwhile, could produce a storm surge of 15-20 feet in some areas.
The NHC warns of prolonged power outages lasting days to weeks, damage to trees and powerlines and inaccessible roads. Tornadoes are also possible.
DeSantis reminded residents to use generators properly and make sure they stay outside their homes, as using them indoors could lead to carbon monoxide poisoning. He also encouraged locals to look into the pet-friendly shelters required in each county.
Florida A&M University in Tallahassee postponed its upcoming college football game against Alabama A&M, while NASA and SpaceX rescheduled a planned astronaut launch.
Other states will feel the effects from Helene, with forecasters saying impacts could possibly be felt all the way to Tennessee. Record-breaking flooding is forecasted for Asheville, North Carolina. Gov. Roy Cooper said Helene could have deadly impacts throughout the state.