Hurricane Helene, a powerful category 4 storm, made landfall along the Florida coast on Thursday night, bringing chaos and potential devastation. With maximum sustained winds of 225 kph, the storm threatened high winds, storm surges, and drenching rainfall. States of emergency were declared in Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas, Virginia, and Alabama. Scientists attribute the strength of these storms to global warming, as warm oceans fuel their intensity.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis urged residents to evacuate before the storm hit, warning of flooding, road closures, and power outages. Once it makes landfall, Helene is expected to weaken but continue to spread up the southeastern coast towards North Carolina. The storm has already caused power outages in Cuba and flooding in Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula.
Forecasters predict unprecedented damage in the region, with at least 50 million people under hurricane and tropical storm warnings. The storm has already impacted parts of Florida, with storm surges affecting cities like Tampa and St. Petersburg. In the North Carolina mountains, officials urged residents to seek safety on higher ground as Helene neared land, bringing heavy rains on Thursday night and into Friday.
Helene is the eighth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season and is part of a pattern of increasingly powerful storms due to warming oceans. Experts warn that the effects of climate change could continue to fuel the frequency and strength of hurricanes in the future.
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