Hurricane Helene could strenghten to a Category 4 when it hits Florida

Helene has been upgraded from a tropical storm to a hurricane as it barrels toward Florida.
As of Wednesday afternoon, Hurricane Helene reached Category 1 as it gathered strength in the Gulf of Mexico, and it could become an even more powerful, potentially devastating storm before it is expected to make landfall in Florida’s Big Bend late Thursday.
AccuWeather’s chief meteorologist, Jon Porter, predicts Helene could strengthen to a Category 4 hurricane, with maximum sustained winds of 130-156 mph.
“The impacts from Helene will be widespread — not just confined to locations near landfall in the Florida Panhandle,” Porter warned in a press release.
“The storm surge will be life-threatening across the Florida Panhandle and southward to near Tampa. Destructive wind gusts could badly damage or even destroy homes and businesses. Countless trees will likely come down in this storm not just across the Florida Panhandle but also inland through Georgia and even into western South and North Carolina leading to extended power outages.”
Powerful winds will not be limited to Florida, especially as the storm pushes further inland late Thursday.
“Hurricane-force winds could extend into southern Georgia Thursday night and at least some tropical storm-force gusts through much of Georgia, including Atlanta, and parts of South Carolina into Friday,” The Weather Channel reports.
Heavy rains and possible flooding will also spread throughout the Southeast.
Parts of western North Carolina, north Georgia and upstate South Carolina are at a “high risk” for flooding, according to the Weather Prediction Center. “There’s also a flood risk across much of the Southeast, from western Tennessee to the Atlantic Coast, where as much as a foot of rain could fall.”
Thousands in Florida across at least 15 coastal Florida counties have already been forced to evacuate, CNN reported, with more mandatory evacuations expected.
Meanwhile, most of the state is under tropical alerts, with strong winds and rainfall already hitting the state ahead of the hurricane.
In the Big Bend area, up to 18 feet of surge flooding is possible, with Tampa at risk of up to eight feet and much of South Florida at risk of almost five feet.
Hurricane Helene is on track to be the strongest storm to strike the U.S in the 2024 season, as the Deseret News previously reported.
Yahoo Sports’ Liz Roscher suggests Hurricane Helene could throw the Week 5 schedule of college football “into chaos.”
As of Wednesday afternoon, one game, Florida A&M University vs. Alabama A&M, was postponed from this upcoming Saturday to Friday, Nov. 29, due to the storm.
Florida State is scheduled playing SMU in Dallas on Saturday, so it’s possible the Seminoles’ travel plans could be affected.
Though some home games in Florida haven’t been rescheduled yet, Roscher listed a few that could be postponed as the storm nears: Miami Hurricanes vs. Virginia Tech in Miami Gardens on Friday, UCF vs. Colorado in Orlando on Saturday, and Georgia vs. Alabama in Tuscaloosa on Saturday.
In the world of baseball, meanwhile, the hurricane could impact the MLB playoffs in Atlanta. The Atlanta Braves and New York Mets are facing off Wednesday and Thursday night, and those key games have yet to be postponed.