Hurricane Helene weakens after pounding Florida

By Lisa James
27/09/2024
Home » Hurricane Helene weakens after pounding Florida

Hurricane Helene has weakened to category one after making landfall in Florida.

Helene hit Florida’s Big Bend area as a category four storm, but is losing strength as it heads north towards Georgia.

The National Weather Service said Helene is expected to weaken further as it moves north-northeast.

Earlier in the week, the Disney cruise ship Fantasy had to spend extra time at sea after being unable to dock when the Port Authority of the Cayman Island closed the port on Tuesday because of Helene, which at that point was a tropical storm, the Independent reports.

Airports including Tampa International, Southwest Florida International and St Pete-Clearwater International closed on Thursday. Tampa said it ‘anticipates reopening Friday following a damage assessment that will begin as soon as it is safe to do so’ and St Pete-Clearwater said it plans to open on Friday morning.

Passengers have been told to check their flight status.

Meanwhile, Hurricane John, which made landfall on Mexico as a catergory three hurricane on Monday, is expected to hit the country again. John weakened to a tropical storm over the Pacific mid-week but the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said on Thursday it has gained strength again and is now heading to Mexico’s Pacific coast.

The UK Foreign Office (FCDO) updated its weather warning for Mexico to say: “Tropical Depression John has gained strength and has become Hurricane CAT 1. Hurricane John is now likely to affect Colima (centre, south and north), Michoacán (south, southeast and southwest), Guerrero (west and southwest). Local authorities have set a red (Michoacan) and orange alerts (Colima).

“Hurricane John is expected to make landfall on 26 September at 18:00 pm.”

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