ORLANDO, Fla. — Hurricane Helene formed Wednesday morning near the Yucatan Peninsula.
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11 a.m. update:
The National Hurricane Center confirmed Helene has strengthened into a Category 1 storm.
Hurricane Helene is moving north-northwest at 10 mph and has maximum sustained winds of around 80 mph.
Watch: Action 9: How to prepare before the storm
The hurricane is expected to rapidly intensify as it lifts into the Gulf of Mexico.
The latest forecast has Helene as a Category 2 storm Wednesday evening and becomes a Category 3 major hurricane on Thursday.
It is likely the storm will be a major hurricane at landfall in the Big Bend area.
Helene is expected to bring life-threatening storm surges, damaging winds, and flooding rains to a large portion of Florida and the southeastern United States.
10:05 a.m. update:
President Joe Biden approved an emergency declaration for Florida on Wednesday.
The action authorizes FEMA to coordinate disaster relief efforts in the state.
Read: Hurricane tips: What you should do to prepare
Officials said federal funding is also available to provide emergency assistance for Alachua, Bradford, Columbia, Escambia, Hamilton, Holmes, Marion, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, Sumter, Union, Walton and Washington counties.
Tropical Storm Helene is just offshore the northeastern coast of the Yucatan Peninsula and is close to hurricane strength.
Original report:
As of Wednesday morning, Helene’s track is still aiming to impact the Big Bend area of Florida.
The storm is sitting off the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula.
Photos: Tropical Storm Helene gains strength as hurricane warnings issued in part of Florida
Helene will follow a similar track as Hurricane Debby and Hurricane Idalia.
Helene is forecast to become a major hurricane before making landfall Thursday night in Florida.
Watch: Parts of Florida still recovering from Hurricane Debby prepare for Helene
Our biggest threat in Central Florida will be from Helene’s rain bands.
Those storms had a chance of producing isolated tornados, especially Thursday evening.
Watch: See where you can get sandbags in Central Florida
Spotty power outages and localized flooding are possible.
As of Wednesday morning, the worst weather will stay west of Central Florida.
Channel 9 will continue to monitor Helene and provide updates on Eyewitness News.
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