Hurricane Helene tracker: Map storm's forecast path through Georgia
Editor's note: This story was initially published Wednesday afternoon. Follow along here for the latest Helene updates on Friday.
Hurricane Helene is forecast to make landfall somewhere Florida's Big Bend region late Thursday, AccuWeather forecasters said. As of now, more than 42 million people in Florida, Georgia and Alabama are under hurricane and tropical storm warnings, the National Weather Service said.
After making landfall, its path is expected to move into Georgia on Friday. Significant storm surge and coastal flooding are expected in Georgia with portions of Savannah possibly seeing flooding from Thursday night into Friday.
Heavy rains that could lead to flooding are also expected in parts of inland Georgia as the storm moves into the Peach State and widespread power outages could be seen due to a high risk of falling trees and broken tree limbs.
Georgia power outage map: Track widespread outages from Helene in the state
Florida power outage map: Track widespread outages from Helene in the state
Ryan Truchelut, founder of WeatherTiger and a hurricane forecaster for the USA TODAY NETWORK-Florida, said Helene is a storm without precedent.
"Helene stands toe-to-toe with any of the threats that Florida has faced over the past 10 years or indeed really over hurricane history," Truchelut said.
National Weather Service in Atlanta forecasts a strong storm system
The National Weather Service Office in Atlanta said on Wednesday that flash flooding could be of concern in north and central Georgia with 4-10 inches of rain forecasted.
As well as torrential rain, tornadoes could add another damaging aspect to the hurricane with the threat of these increasing on Thursday night into Friday as Hurricane Helene moves through the state, the service said.
Hurricane Helene tracker
Georgia Weather Alerts
What is rapid intensification?
Computer models indicate that Helene has a high chance of experiencing rapid intensification over the next 24 hours, Robbie Berg, a specialist at the hurricane center, wrote in a Wednesday morning forecast.
Rapid intensification is when a hurricane’s winds accelerate by 35 mph or more within 24 hours. The storm has already reached Category 4 status, although briefly, but Helene could reach that category again before making landfall
Contributing: Gabe Hauari, Dinah Voyles Pulver
Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected] and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Hurricane Helene forecast to hit Georgia after landfall: Storm tracker