Weather Aware: Helene makes landfall in Florida; flash flooding, severe storms and high winds in the Carolinas ahead of impact

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Helene made landfall around 11:10 p.m. about 10 miles east of Perry, Florida, as a Category 4 major hurricane (winds 140 mph). It’ll continue to batter the Big Bend and eventually the southeastern United States.

Multiple tornado warnings were issued in the Charlotte area Thursday morning ahead of Hurricane Helene as a line of storms brought heavy rain and gusty winds to the Carolinas. This was on top of a confirmed EF1 tornado in the Blowing Rock area around 6:38 p.m. Wednesday and various other tornado warnings over the course of 24 hours.

Due to an elevated tornado risk overnight through midday Friday, a Tornado Watch is in place through 8 a.m. for portions of the Charlotte area. This includes Chesterfield, Lancaster, Chester, Anson, Cabarrus, Gaston, Union (NC), Richmond and Mecklenburg counties.

RELATED: Multiple tornado warnings pop up Thursday ahead of Hurricane Helene

The storm will continue to cause catastrophic wind, storm surges and flash flooding.

LIVE RADAR: Tracking Helene, impacts on the Carolinas

The forecast cone continues to show it hitting Florida’s Gulf Coast first, remaining a hurricane as it moves northwest through Georgia. Helene will still be a tropical storm by 2 p.m. Friday as it crosses into eastern Tennessee and the westernmost tip of North Carolina, becoming a tropical depression early Saturday morning in southern Kentucky and north-central Tennessee.

Remember, this early rain and severe storm risk is not Helene moving inland. It’s tropical moisture pushing in from the south combined with a stalled front north and northwest of Charlotte.

Impacts from a stalled front and eventually Helene become more intense through the overnight hours. Expect a flash flooding risk, severe storms and high winds through at least midday Friday before conditions slowly improve throughout the day.

Tropical storm watches and warnings are in place, including most of our viewing area. A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for Mecklenburg, Union, York, Chester, Gaston, Lincoln, Catawba, Cleveland, Burke, Caldwell and Avery counties. Impacted cities and towns include Banner Elk, Shelby, Lenoir, Morganton, Hickory, Newton, Gastonia, Charlotte, Rock Hill, Fort Mill, Chester, Lincolnton, Monroe, Huntersville, Matthews, and Cheraw.

Additionally, a Flood Watch is in place for Alexander, Catawba, Cleveland, Lincoln, Avery, Burke, Caldwell, Ashe, and Watauga counties. 

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Rainfall totals over a foot are likely across portions of the mountains and foothills. For the Charlotte metro, many areas have already received three to four inches of rain, so half a foot is very possible when all is said and done. On top of rainfall and flooding impacts, wind gusts of tropical-storm force (above 40 mph) are likely to cause trees to fall and scattered power outages across the region.

On top of the wind and rain, the Carolinas are expected to be in the right-front quadrant of Helene, often referred to as the “dirty side.” This will lead to a higher-than-average risk of quick spin-up tornadoes, especially overnight through Friday morning. Tropical tornadoes are often very weak but they can still produce impacts.

In the event of a severe storm, stay Weather Aware by:

• Seeking shelters indoors away from lightning and gusty winds
• Having your weather radio on hand and your safe place picked out
• Pack essentials, including medications and pet supplies, in case you have to evacuate quickly
• Watching for flooded creeks and streams
• If you encounter a flooded roadway: turn around, don’t drown
• Monitoring radar for quick-moving thunderstorms that could disrupt outdoor plans

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