Tropical Storm Helene continues to get better organized in the Northwest Caribbean and will head for the Eastern Gulf of Mexico Wednesday. Hurricane conditions will spread across North Florida from the Panhandle to as far south as Tampa Bay. Tropical storm conditions are forecast to spread northward into Eastern Alabama, all of Georgia and interior South Carolina into Western North Carolina and Tennessee late Thursday and Friday.
Photo byNational Hurricane Center
Hurricane model forecasts continue to show a tight cluster in the tracks with landfall forecast to occur somewhere between Panama City Florida and Cross City Florida on the panhandle. From there the center is forecast to head northward into Western or Central Georgia. This storm however will be different from others as a strong upper air disturbance to the west will likely slow the weakening, enhance heavy rainfalls, and produce what could be a robust severe thunderstorm and tornado outbreak.
Photo byNational Hurricane Center
There still remains a spread with the hurricane model and intensity forecasts. Some models have it reaching category 4 strength at landfall (140 mph winds) while others are not as strong showing category 2 or 3 status. Either way this storm poses big issues for inland areas of the Eastern Gulf States and the Southeast US.6