TAMPA, Fla. — Helene hit Florida as a Category 4 hurricane late Thursday night, before weakening and downgrading to a tropical storm Friday morning. But where in Florida did it actually land?
The storm first made landfall in the Big Bend region near Perry and made its way directly north to Georgia, radar shows. In that time, it weakened from Category 4.
But just because the eye of the storm didn’t directly hit other parts of Florida, that doesn't mean they weren’t affected.
Before Helene even made landfall, flooding began along Florida’s coast. Rapidly rising waters were reported across Florida’s west coast. The National Weather Service in Tampa Bay posted this radar video showing the storm moving water on the coast from Cape Coral all the way up to Tallahassee at 5:20 p.m. Thursday, hours before the storm made landfall.
Friday morning, officials in Tampa and across the west coast were asking people to stay in their homes. Roads were closed due to the flooding, and over a million people in the state have been without electricity.
Storm surges brought several feet of water into roads, businesses and homes in Clearwater Beach, closing the beach until further notice.
In Venice, people are being asked to shelter in place to stay safe from the flooding and debris.
Closer to the Big Bend region, the island of Cedar Key also is seeing a lot of flooding. The city posted a message on Facebook urging people to stay inside if they didn’t evacuate.
“Please… Anyone that stayed on the island, stay in your home unless you need help. If you need help call 911. We have multiple crews trying to clear road and debris. The streets are not safe. You will be told to go back home,” Cedar Key Fire Rescue wrote on Facebook this morning.
