Catastrophic Flooding and Wind Damage from Category 4 Hurricane Helene Tonight in Northwest Florida

One of the strongest hurricanes to make landfall in Florida will produce widespread catastrophic damage and flooding tonight and Friday. Hurricane Helene at 7 PM Thursday has intensified to a Category 4 storm that is now about 130 miles west of Tampa.  The storm is moving quickly to the north-northwest at 23 mph. The storm will make landfall tonight near Cross City, Florida.  Up to 20 ft. of storm surge is forecast which will produce extreme damage. Heavy, flooding rains and tornadoes will also occur.  The storm is forecast to produce heavy rain inland over Georgia into the southern Appalachians tomorrow. A few showers make work their way into the NYC metro area this weekend. All the best to the residents of Florida in the path of this historic, dangerous storm. 

George Wright is a Certified Consulting Meteorologist for Wright Weather Consulting, LLC. Visit our website at WrightWeather.com. Follow George Wright on Twitter @gwweather.