Hurricane Helene has been upgraded to a Category 3 storm, with sustained winds of up to 120 mph. That’s the bad news, especially for Tallahassee and the rest of the Big Bend area of Florida. The good news for people living in New Tampa and Wesley Chapel — 25-30 miles or more from the nearest coastline — is that as of 4 p.m., Helene has been a non-event for us.
But, please — don’t assume that the storm is over or that our area isn’t going to suffer any effects from it. We already have had wind gusts of 40 mph or so and not only has the storm not yet come close to bypassing us, it also is HUGE!, with tropical storm-force winds extending out more than 300 miles from its center. As Helene passes our latitude 100+ miles out in the Gulf, we are definitely going to get hit with strong tropical storm winds (up to 73 mph) and periods of strong rain that likely will knock out power in at least some of our communities. Thankfully, Helene is moving quickly (at 20 mph or more), so it won’t be a huge rain event for us (like Debby was), but there will still be enough water to cause significant flooding in areas prone to pooling water. And yes, the storm’s path can still tick a little to the east, which would increase our area’s possible impacts.
You also should be aware that unless you know how deep the water is on a road if you are driving through it, you need to please proceed with extreme caution, especially if you’re in an electric vehicle — as the batteries can catch fire. If you lose power and have a portable generator, please never run that generator inside your home or garage. And of course, as with any major storm, beware of downed trees and especially power lines. We have seen this kind of damage in the past, without one of the largest hurricanes ever to hit the Gulf going by, so please continue to be mindful of possible local impacts from this storm.
Photo is a screenshot from meteorologist Denis Phillips of ABC Action News.