Helene is upgraded to Category 2 hurricane as it barrels toward Florida
CTV
Fast-moving Hurricane Helene was advancing Thursday across the Gulf of Mexico toward Florida, threatening an "unsurvivable" storm surge in northwestern parts of the state as well as damaging winds, rains and flash floods hundreds of miles inland across much of the southeastern U.S., forecasters said.
Helene strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane Thursday as it barreled across the Gulf of Mexico on a path to Florida.
The huge storm’s center is expected to make landfall in the Big Bend area of Florida’s northwestern coast as soon as late Thursday.
The storm is so large that areas roughly 90 miles (145 kilometres) north of the Georgia-Florida line could expect hurricane conditions. States as far inland as Tennessee, Kentucky and Indiana could see rainfall.
Helene became a tropical storm Tuesday in the western Caribbean Sea and became a hurricane Wednesday.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
Fast-moving Hurricane Helene was advancing Thursday across the Gulf of Mexico toward Florida, threatening an "unsurvivable" storm surge in northwestern parts of the state as well as damaging winds, rains and flash floods hundreds of miles inland across much of the southeastern U.S., forecasters said.
Helene is expected to be a major hurricane -- meaning a Category 3 or higher -- when it makes landfall on Florida's northwestern coast Thursday evening. As of early Thursday, hurricane warnings and flash flood warnings extended far beyond the coast up into south-central Georgia. The governors of Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas have all declared emergencies in their states.
