Stream FOX 35 News

ORLANDO, Florida. – Helene strengthened to a Category 1 hurricane on Wednesday and is expected to strengthen further — possibly to a major Category 3 hurricane — before making landfall in Florida on Thursday. Helene is likely to bring life-threatening storm surges, damaging winds, torrential rain and flooding to parts of the Sunshine State.

Helene is the eighth named storm of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season. If the storm makes landfall over Florida’s Big Bend region, it would be the third hurricane to make landfall there in the past two years (Hurricane Ian in 2022, Hurricane Idalia in 2023).

Below you will find the latest news on the expected track, cone, timeline, landfall and impacts of Hurricane Helene in Florida.

Hurricane Helene was 85 miles from Cozumel, Mexico, and 500 miles from Tampa, Florida, according to NHC’s 11 a.m. update Wednesday. The storm is moving NNW at 10 mph with maximum sustained winds of 80 mph, making it a Category 1 hurricane.

The pressure is 979 mb.

Timeline: When is Hurricane Helene expected to hit Florida?

Hurricane Helene is expected to continue to strengthen in the Gulf of Mexico to become a major hurricane (Cat. 3+) before making landfall in Florida’s Big Bend region on Thursday evening.

The final track (cone) of the NHC is shown below. After landfall, Helene is expected to weaken, but due to the size, speed, and strength of the storm, strong, damaging winds are possible for much of the interior of the southeastern United States.

Central Florida – Orlando and surrounding cities – will begin feeling the effects of Hurricane Helene on Wednesday, including tropical storm force winds, gusty winds, heavy rainfall and the possibility of tornado warnings.

When will Hurricane Helene bring the worst weather to Central Florida?

The worst of the weather will be felt Thursday night, when much of central Florida will experience tropical storm force winds, strong gusts and heavy rainfall, up to 4 inches possible in some areas. There is also a chance of a tornado or two.

Below you will find an overview per province of what you can expect.

Stay connected with FOX 35