Hurricane Helene devastates Florida with record storm surge
Hurricane Helene has reached Florida. According to American media, it is one of the strongest storms to hit the state in years. One of the peninsula's residents showed the effects of Helene's arrival and the damage the hurricane caused in just three hours.
Hurricane Helene is one of the most powerful storms that struck the United States coast. The wind speed reaches as much as 210 km/h. The storm draws strength from the record-warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico. According to the portal livescience.com, the hurricane has reached Category 4, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC). The hit on Florida was expected to occur on Thursday evening or Friday morning Eastern Time.
Upon reaching land, Helene is expected to cause a storm surge, raising the sea level by up to 6 metres. Florida authorities have urged people to evacuate from the coast.
When you're talking about a storm surge greater than 10 feet [3 m] — which we're talking about for a large portion of the Florida Big Bend region — this is a storm surge that is very difficult to survive. People should not be there. You don't have to go hundreds of miles, you just have to get out of the storm surge area - stated Daniel Brown, the head of the Specialist Hurricane Unit at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), for livescience.com.
Hurricane Helene has arrived. He recorded what happened before and after
One of the users of the X platform showed the effects of Hurricane Helene in two videos separated by three hours. The first one shows a flooded marina and water approaching the building where the author of the recording is located. The next video shows the water already inside. The water reaches nearly the kitchen countertops. The whole room is flooded.
According to further forecasts, Helene is expected to move through Florida and continue its path inland through Georgia, Tennessee, and Alabama after reaching land. Millions of people are in the danger zone. Therefore, evacuations are being conducted, and airports are being closed.
Scientists remind us that hurricanes form from a layer of water that evaporates due to heat, creating storm clouds. The warmer the ocean, the more energy the storm will have. The hurricane season lasts from June to November, with the strongest storms in the Atlantic usually occurring between August and September, when ocean temperatures are at their highest. Experts believe that climate change is causing such violent phenomena to become more frequent and more dangerous.
