Weather

Tampa’s NBC affiliate reports: The “Insurance Village” resource center is to open in Clearwater this weekend for residents to expedite the filing of insurance claims. The Florida Department of Financial Services’ Division of Consumer Services will host around 42 insurance agencies to help residents who are in the process of filing a claim. The “Insurance Village” will be open from …

The Associated Press reports: More than 40 trillion gallons of rain drenched the Southeast United States in the last week from Hurricane Helene and a run-of-the-mill rainstorm that sloshed in ahead of it — an unheard of amount of water that has stunned experts. That’s enough to fill the Dallas Cowboys’ stadium 51,000 times, or Lake Tahoe just once. If …

Florida Politics reports: Following the devastating Hurricane Helene that unleashed winds and water, the state issued an emergency order to protect property owners from losing their insurance. The emergency order from the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation comes as Florida’s insurance industry was already in crisis before the Category 4 Hurricane Helene arrived. Under the emergency order, insurance companies are …

Tampa’s ABC affiliate reports: As residents across the Tampa Bay area return to their homes for the first time since Hurricane Helene passed through the area, local officials are asking those who own electric vehicles to stay vigilant when assessing damage. On Saturday, Pinellas County Government posted a video of a flooded Tesla that caught fire inside a homeowner’s garage. …

NBC News reports: Searches are ongoing this morning for hundreds of missing people across southeastern states this morning, with at least 95 confirmed fatalities across six states, according to a list maintained by NBC News. At least 30 people have died in a single county in Asheville, North Carolina, the site of disastrous flooding, Buncombe County Sheriff Quentin Miller said …

The New York Times reports: Hurricane Helene ravaged much of the Southeast last week, carving a path of destruction from Florida to Appalachian states as it spawned deadly flooding, mudslides and tornadoes. After making landfall on Thursday on Florida’s Gulf Coast, the storm, with its powerful winds and record-breaking storm surges, killed at least 60 people, destroyed countless homes, put …

ABC News reports: Residents of Pasco County, Florida, just north of Tampa, are facing “a level of devastation in our county that, quite honestly, I haven’t seen in the 20-plus years that I’ve lived here,” county administrator Mike Carballa said. Pasco County’s emergency center received about 400 to 500 calls for service early Friday morning after landfall, Carballa said. Of …

The New York Times reports: Cedar Key, a small community on a collection of tiny islands jutting into the Gulf of Mexico, is emerging as one of the areas most devastated when Helene struck Florida’s Big Bend region on Thursday night. “Cedar Key as we know it is completely gone,” said Michael Bobbitt, a novelist and playwright who lives in …

Tampa’s Fox affiliate reports: Flooding caused by record-breaking storm surge from Hurricane Helene has prompted hundreds of water rescues in coastal portions of the Tampa Bay area. Helene brought significant impacts to the region before making landfall late Thursday night as a Category 4 storm, bringing catastrophic storm surge and life-threatening winds to Florida’s Big Bend area. Maximum sustained winds …

The Weather Channel reports: H​urricane Helene is intensifying ahead of a Category 4 landfall in Florida tonight, delivering catastrophic, possibly record storm surge, destructive winds and flooding rainfall. The fast-moving pace of Helene means its dangers will spread well inland. Life-threatening flash flooding, potential record river flooding, damaging winds and tornadoes are expected in parts of Georgia, the Carolinas and …

USA Today reports: Over 900 U.S. flights are already canceled Thursday due to Hurricane Helene, according to FlightAware. Tampa International Airport, St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport and Tallahassee International Airport in Florida all announced they’ll be closed for the day, but the storm’s impacts extend beyond its projected path. Airlines began offering travel waivers earlier this week so customers could reschedule …

Sarasota’s ABC affiliate reports: The National Hurricane Center is reporting that Helene is now a Category 2 Hurricane with maximum sustained wind gusts of 100 MPH. The storm is currently 320 miles southwest of Tampa, Florida and continuing its trek toward the Big Bend Area where it could make landfall as a Category 4 hurricane, intensified by the warm waters …

Orlando’s NBC affiliate reports: Hurricane Helene has strengthened, according to the National Hurricane Center, and is expected to slam Florida as a Category 4 storm. Helene is currently located about 460 miles south-southwest of Tampa with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph and a minimum central pressure of 978 mb. A northward or north-northeastward motion at a faster forward speed …

Yahoo News reports: Evacuations are underway and time is running out for Floridians to prepare for Tropical Storm Helene, which threatens to hit as the strongest storm to make landfall in the United States in over a year. Evacuations began late Tuesday for some coastal areas of Florida facing potentially dangerous storm surge. Officials ordered mandatory evacuations in parts of …

Atlanta First News reports: Gov. Brian Kemp has issued a state of emergency in Georgia ahead of Tropical Storm Helene, which is expected to hit metro Atlanta late Thursday and early Friday. The state of emergency is in effect from now until Oct. 2 at midnight, according to the order. It allows several government departments to deploy resources to the …

Jacksonville’s NBC affiliate reports: A day after declaring a state of emergency in 41 Florida counties, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced at a news conference Tuesday at the Emergency Operations Center in Tallahassee that he had increased the number to 61, including all counties in Northeast Florida. The only four counties not currently under a state of emergency are in southeast …

The Tallahassee Democrat reports: Hurricane, tropical storm, and storm surge watches have been issued for portions of Florida’s Gulf Coast as Potential Tropical Cyclone Nine takes aim at Florida, according to the latest advisory from the National Hurricane Center. The storm that is expected to become a hurricane Wednesday could become a Category 3 hurricane with 115-mph winds by the …

Florida Politics reports: With a tropical system brewing near the Gulf of Mexico, Florida has issued a state of emergency in 41 counties and has activated the state’s price gouging hotline to report bad actors taking advantage of diligent residents preparing for the storm. Under Florida law, it is illegal for retailers in the state to artificially jack up prices …

Tampa’s CBS affiliate reports: Governor Ron DeSantis issued a state of emergency on Monday for most of Florida’s 67 counties ahead of potential impacts from what’s forecasted to become Hurricane Helene. Citrus, Hernando, Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas and Sarasota counties are all listed under the governor’s state of emergency. The National Hurricane Center is currently monitoring Potential Tropical Cyclone Nine, …

USA Today reports: A brewing storm in the Caribbean Sea is forecast to strengthen into a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico over the next few days and make landfall along the Gulf Coast as early as Thursday − possibly as a major Category 3 system. “Everyone along the Florida Panhandle and Big Bend region needs to be prepared for …