Helene expected to cause flash flooding with up to 15 inches of rainOfficials urge evacuations due to catastrophic winds and storm surgeEnergy facilities scale back operations
A drone view shows boats as Hurricane Helene intensifies before its expected landfall on Florida’s Big Bend, in Carrabelle, Florida, U.S. September 26, 2024. REUTERS/Marco Bello.
Driving rain flooded roadways and closed down airports in Florida as an intensifying Hurricane Helene marched toward the state’s Panhandle region, bringing the threat of a potentially deadly storm surge to much of the coastline.
The storm had strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane early on Thursday and had maximum sustained winds of 105 mph (169 kph) as of 11 a.m. (1500 GMT), according to Michael Brennan, the director of the National Hurricane Centre.
