Hurricane Helene was set to slam into the Florida coast as a \u201ccatastrophic\u201d Category 4 storm Thursday, the US weather service said, threatening up to six metres of deadly ocean surge and pummeling winds as residents rushed to get out of harm\u2019s way. The fast-moving storm was a Category 2 early Thursday, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) in Miami said, packing wind speeds of 155 kilometres an hour as it churns over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico. The NHC said it is expected to make landfall near the state\u2019s Big Bend by Thursday evening or early Friday, warning that \u201cdamaging\u201d winds may \u201cpenetrate well inland across the southeastern United States, including over the higher terrain of the southern Appalachians.\u201d Along with the storm surge and fierce winds, it warned of up to 18 inches of rain and potentially life-threatening flooding as well as \u201cnumerous\u201d landslides across the southern Appalachians. \u201cPreparations to protect life and property should be rushed to completion,\u201d the hurricane centre said. Several states are in the potential path and Atlanta, a Georgia metropolis hundreds of miles from the Gulf Coast home to five million people, is forecast to experience close to tropical storm-force winds and heavy rain into Friday. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis issued a state of emergency for nearly all of Florida\u2019s 67 counties. He mobilized the National Guard and positioned thousands of personnel to prepare for possible search and rescue operations and power restoration. \u201cThe impacts are going to be far beyond the eye of the storm,\u201d DeSantis said. A White House statement said President Joe Biden\u2019s administration \u201cstands ready to provide further assistance to Florida, and other states in the path of the storm.\u201d Helene earlier lashed Mexico\u2019s Yucatan peninsula, home to multiple tourist hotspots. Sixteen Florida counties have announced mandatory partial evacuation orders, while two have ordered the evacuation of all residents. DeSantis said at least 62 healthcare facilities, from hospitals to nursing homes, have already begun evacuations. Sandbags, boarded windows A 402-kilometre stretch of coastline from Tampa Bay to just shy of Panama City, on the Florida panhandle is under a hurricane warning. A \u201cdirect impact\u201d was likely in the Tallahassee region, where coastal communities already looked like ghost towns by Wednesday afternoon. In Crawfordville, potentially in the storm\u2019s direct path, wheelchair-bound residents of the Eden Springs Nursing and Rehab Center were being placed on coach buses for evacuation. Other locals were seen loading up on gas and supplies, filling sandbags, and boarding up homes and businesses. Communities across a wide swath of northwest Florida \u2014 including Tampa Bay, an area of more than three million residents \u2014 faced the dangerous threats of storm surge, heavy rain, and fierce winds. In St Petersburg, adjacent to Tampa, cars lined up at supply donation or distribution centres while people filled sandbags. \u201cI expect the water to come up and just don\u2019t want to get in the house,\u201d Clearwater Beach resident Jasper MacFarland told AFP, adding that he is building a barrier to \u201ckeep as much water out of the house as possible.\u201d Chad Campbell, a tourist from Washington state, told AFP that he has changed his flights to get home to \u201cwhere none of this ever happens. No tornadoes, no hurricanes. So we\u2019ll be fine if we get back home early tomorrow.\u201d If forecasts are confirmed, Helene will become the most powerful hurricane to hit the United States in more than a year. Category 3 Hurricane Idalia hit northwestern Florida in August 2023. Historic storms have hit multiple parts of the globe in recent weeks. Researchers say climate change likely plays a role in the rapid intensification of storms because there is more energy in a warmer ocean for them to feed on.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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