Hurricane Helene Live Tracker

LATEST: Officials have confirmed Hurricane Helene has caused seven deaths across the Southeastern United States.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis reported two fatalities in the state: one individual was struck by a falling sign in Tampa’s Ybor City neighborhood, and another was killed when a tree fell onto a home in Dixie County.
In Georgia, a local sheriff confirmed that two people died in Wheeler County during what appeared to be a tornado spawned by the storm.
Two additional deaths were confirmed after trees fell on homes in Anderson County, South Carolina, and Charlotte, North Carolina.
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper reported a second storm-related fatality in the state, resulting from a car accident on a flooded road in Catawba County.
The death toll highlights the widespread and deadly impact of Hurricane Helene as it continues to batter the Southeast with severe weather.
Hurricane Helene has traveled north from Florida to Georgia and was about 100 miles from Augusta and 40 miles from Macon moving at about 30 mph, the hurricane center in Miami said in a 4 a.m. update.
The hurricane roared ashore in northwestern Florida late Thursday as a powerful Category 4 storm, unleashing catastrophic winds and torrential rain that left millions without power and prompted emergency declarations across multiple states.
The storm has prompted hurricane and flash flood warnings extending far inland into northern Georgia and western North Carolina, with forecasters warning of dangerous conditions well beyond the coast. Maps from weather forecaster Windy.com show its path and damage.
Airports in Florida that were shut down due to Hurricane Helene will reopen on Friday. The reopening includes major airports in Tampa, St. Petersburg, Lakeland, and Tallahassee, restoring critical travel hubs disrupted by the storm.
Orlando International Airport, Florida’s busiest, has been particularly affected, with 77 flights canceled in the past 24 hours as of Friday morning. The cancellations highlight the continued impact of Helene’s path through the state.
Meanwhile, airports in Atlanta and Charlotte, North Carolina, remain operational but are experiencing severe delays and cancellations. Charlotte, a key hub for American Airlines, has seen nearly 300 flight cancellations and close to 400 delays by 8 a.m. Friday.
The situation is not much better in Atlanta, one of the world’s busiest airports, where more than 130 flights have been canceled and over 180 delayed. The disruptions have created a ripple effect across the southeastern U.S., as airlines struggle to manage schedules amid challenging weather conditions.
As airports in Florida gear up to resume operations, travelers are urged to check with their airlines for the latest updates.
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As Hurricane Helene moved inland, the storm claimed its first victims: one person was killed in Florida when a sign fell on their car, while two others were reported dead in south Georgia, where a possible tornado struck as the storm approached.
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“When Floridians wake up tomorrow morning, we’re going to be waking up to a state where very likely there’s been additional loss of life and certainly there’s going to be loss of property,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said at a Thursday night news conference, highlighting the storm’s deadly toll.
Weather satellites are tracking Hurricane Helene’s approach toward Florida’s coast, capturing the storm’s intensifying threat from space. The hurricane’s impact has reached beyond the ground, forcing NASA and SpaceX to delay the planned launch of a new crew to the International Space Station due to hazardous conditions. According to NASA’s Rob Navias, the International Space Station will make a second, more direct pass over Hurricane Helene at 2:25 p.m. EDT (1825 GMT), providing about five minutes of close-up views of the storm. While the flyover won’t be livestreamed, NASA plans to release the recorded footage via the NASA+ streaming service and its social media channels.
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The weather service warned storm surges could be particularly “catastrophic and unsurvivable” in Apalachee Bay. “Please, please, please take any evacuation orders seriously!” the office said, describing the surge scenario as “a nightmare.” Federal authorities staged search-and-rescue teams. Michael Brennan, Director of the National Hurricane Center, said: “A really unsurvivable scenario is going to play out.”
Hurricane Helene’s reach extended well beyond Florida, inundating the North Carolina mountains with up to 10 inches (25 cm) of rain, and forecasters warned that up to 14 inches (36 cm) more could fall before the storm moves out. Officials cautioned that the resulting floods could be the worst the region has seen in the past century.
Meanwhile, heavy rain and fierce winds began hitting Valdosta, Georgia, near the Florida border on Thursday. The National Weather Service reported that more than a dozen counties in Georgia could be battered by hurricane-force winds exceeding 110 mph (177 kph) as Helene continued its destructive march northward.
The National Hurricane Center in Miami reported that Hurricane Helene swept ashore near the mouth of the Aucilla River in Florida’s Big Bend region. The storm packed maximum sustained winds of 140 mph, making it a powerful Category 4 system. This location is just 20 miles northwest of where Hurricane Idalia made landfall last year with nearly the same intensity, causing widespread damage across the region.
Waves of up to 20 feet are forecast to pummel Florida’s coastline as the “highly dangerous” weather pattern bears down on the state. Authorities are bracing for widespread damage to boats, port infrastructure, beaches, wildlife and homes near the shore. “Helene continues to produce catastrophic winds that are now pushing into southern Georgia,” the National Hurricane Center warned in a 1 a.m. update on Friday. “Persons should not leave their shelters and remain in place through the passage of these life-threatening conditions.”
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press