“Winds are expected to weaken after landfall, but Helene’s high speed will allow strong, damaging winds, particularly in gusts, to extend far inland across the southeastern United States, including the higher elevations of the southern Appalachians,” the National Hurricane Center said.

Dailey said Tallahassee, which over the years has managed to avoid many of the devastating blows that have struck other Florida cities, was on the brink of “a historic event.” Officials said it could cause power outages, downed trees and structural damage that could take weeks or months to repair.

“If the city of Tallahassee is directly hit by a Category 3 hurricane, it will be the strongest hurricane in recorded history to ever hit our community. The current forecast continues to place us right in the cone of Hurricane Helene,” Dailey said at a news conference Wednesday before the forecast indicated it could become a more powerful Category 4 storm.

“Now is the time to prepare,” Dailey said. “We don’t have time to wait anymore. Today is the day.”

On Wednesday, there was no shortage of residents heeding calls to prepare.

By Wednesday morning, more than 17,000 sandbags had already been distributed across the three locations set up by the city.

Leroy Peck, 66, was one of many who spent part of the day shoveling sand into bags in a parking lot outside a community center. He had already filled his cars with gas and done some shopping.

“I’ve seen some storms, but we’re usually on the edge and this is forecast as a direct hit, so it adds to the anxiety,” said Peck, a retired police lieutenant. “We’ve been dodging bullets for a long time, and I think we were unlucky.

“It’s something that needs to be taken seriously, so we’re just keeping an eye on the weather and just trying to make sure friends and neighbors are doing okay,” he added.

Peck said he will ride out the storm with his mother-in-law and 8-year-old son, while his wife works as a 911 dispatcher.

There were other signs of the approaching storm all over the city, with the city announcing that it would not be collecting trash or recycling on Thursday and Friday.

Tallahassee International Airport has said it will suspend operations starting Thursday and resume when it is safe to do so.

Three major universities, Florida State University, Florida A&M University and Tallahassee State College, have canceled classes for the remainder of the week.

The city said Tuesday that emergency services from several states would arrive Wednesday evening to assist with response and recovery efforts.

Maj. Thornton III, 29, said he and his family planned to evacuate their apartment and move in with relatives further south.

“We heard the storm is getting stronger, so why stay? Just play it safe. It doesn’t hurt to protect yourself and get out,” he said as he shoveled sandbags Wednesday. “You have to protect the family.”

Several residents said the looming storm brought back memories of Hurricane Michael, which made landfall as a Category 5 storm before weakening over land. The storm hit Tallahassee in 2018, causing widespread power outages across the area.

Powell said it was very difficult to return home due to fallen trees and debris blocking roads, and she had been without power for more than a week.

“It was just horrible,” she said.

Peck hopes the storm has taught residents not to worry too much about their safety and to be prepared to be without power for a while.

Latoya Williams, 40, said that as a Florida resident she wasn’t afraid of the storm but made appropriate preparations and evacuated her mobile home with her husband and children to a hotel.

“The house can be replaced. We can’t be replaced. As long as I have my family, all of us together, it’s fine,” she said.