Tropical Storm Helene forms; expected to become major hurricane

GULF OF MEXICO — Tropical Storm Helene formed Tuesday in the Caribbean Sea and will strengthen into a major hurricane while moving north toward the U.S., forecasters said.

Hurricane watches have been issued for parts of Cuba, Mexico and a stretch of the Florida coastline, including Tampa Bay, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. A tropical storm warning has been issued for parts of the Florida Keys.

The storm was located 170 miles southeast of the western tip of Cuba and had sustained winds of 45 mph. It’s expected to strengthen into Hurricane Helene on Wednesday as it approached the Gulf Coast.

Helene will likely make landfall late Thursday along the Big Bend area of Florida. Then, the storm will accelerate into Georgia. It will likely impact our area towards the end of the week.

It’s still early, but the storm could produce excessive rainfall and gusty wind across the western Carolinas.

Rain totals might reach 3 inches, with much higher amounts farther west. Wind speeds could reach 30 to 40 mph and we might see a few isolated tornadoes.

Our biggest impacts will likely be late Thursday into early Friday morning, but we could also see significant rain late Wednesday into Thursday.

The rainfall could increase flooding concerns in the area, especially out west toward the mountains.

Severe Weather Center 9 will have updates throughout the week.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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