Climate Impact Report – 9/27

Key Facts Of The Day 9/27

Hurricane Helene

• On Thursday night, Hurricane Helene intensified into a dangerous Category 4 storm with maximum sustained winds of 140 mph when it made landfall over Florida’s Big Bend area.
• Helene made landfall at 11:10 PM ET just east of the mouth of the Aucilla River, about 10 miles west-southwest of Perry, Florida, as a Category 4 storm.
• Helene was the strongest hurricane on record to slam into Florida’s Big Bend.
• Helene broke storm surge records across Florida’s Gulf Coast. The Alafia River, which flows into Tampa Bay, peaked at 9.4 feet shortly after midnight, nearly three feet above the record set last year during Hurricane Idalia.
• Helene brought record-breaking storm surge levels to seven other locations along Florida’s coast. 
• Within hours, Helene weakened into a tropical storm as it moved inland early Friday morning.
• As of 8 AM EST, Helene was located about 80 miles east-northeast of Atlanta, moving to the north at 30 mph, with sustained winds of 60 mph.
• There have been at least five storm-related deaths. 
• As of Friday morning, emergency crews north of Tampa in Citrus County, Florida, conducted more than 100 water rescues as storm surge from Hurricane Helene stood at around 10 feet.
• In Tampa, there were 78 evacuations and water rescues overnight after Helene’s storm surge caused heavy flooding, and in Venice, police and fire rescue crews helped with 30 rescues of residents in coastal areas.
• About 25 people were rescued from flooding and swift water emergencies in Atlanta, Georgia.
• Helene produced rain accumulations of 6 to 12 inches, with isolated totals of around 20 inches in some parts of the southeast.
• Heavy rainfall produced by Tropical Storm Helene is expected to result in both urban and river flooding, as well as landslides, causing catastrophic conditions across the Southeast.
• As of Friday morning, more than 4 million customers were without power across Florida, South Carolina, Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia.
• As of Friday morning, a widespread area of Tropical Storm Warnings was still in effect for North Florida, most of Georgia, all of South Carolina, and Western North Carolina.
• Numerous flash flood warnings were ongoing in Georgia and the western Carolinas, including multiple high-end flash flood emergency warnings in western North Carolina, including in Asheville, and two in metro Atlanta.
• As of Friday morning, tornado watch warnings were in effect from eastern South Carolina into North Carolina and southern Virginia.
• Early Friday morning, wind gusts over 90 MPH were measured in south Georgia, including near Valdosta, Alma, and Douglas. A wind gust as high as 82 mph was measured as far north as Augusta.
• Six states, including Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Alabama, and Virginia, are under a state of emergency as Tropical Storm Helene batters the Southeast.
• Residents in parts of St. Petersburg, Florida, are being asked not to drain water, take showers, do laundry, or flush toilets, as one of the city’s sewer treatment plants has gone offline to protect it from “unprecedented storm surge,” due to Helene.