When is Hurricane Helene supposed to hit land? Time of storm's Florida landfall

Jennifer Sangalang, USA TODAY NETWORK - Florida
·2 min read
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What time will Hurricane Helene, a Category 2 storm, make landfall in Florida on Thursday, Sept. 26?

As of 11 a.m. Thursday, it's a waiting game.

Most schools, colleges and universities in Florida closed for Hurricane Helene through Friday, Sept. 27.

Experts predict Helene will presumably hit land in the Big Bend area of Florida (near Tallahassee and Florida State University for a generic reference point), according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. More information suggests landfall may be near Apalachicola, Florida, between 9 and 11 p.m., according to AccuWeather.

➤ Live updates on Hurricane Helene

Here's what we know.

What time is Helene expected to make landfall? Will Hurricane Helene impact Florida?

Yes, Hurricane Helene will impact Florida. Parts of the state already were experiencing rain, thunderstorms and flash flooding hours ahead of landfall. Many counties were under tornado watches.

Expect life-threatening storm surge and damaging hurricane-force winds along the coast of the Panhandle and Florida's Gulf Coast.

Don't focus on the center of the storm. It's extremely large, which means impacts will be felt hundreds of miles away, especially on the north and east sides.

The graphic above from the National Hurricane Center shows coastal watches and warnings along with the forecast cone for the center of Hurricane Helene. The graphic will automatically update with each advisory from the hurricane center, which is at 5 a.m., 8 a.m., 11 a.m., 2 p.m., 5 p.m., 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. when there is an active storm such as Hurricane Helene.

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Weather radar: Will we get showers, thunderstorms, rain in Florida today?

Shown is the National Weather Service radar for the Southeast United States, which shows conditions in real-time. The current date and time show up on the bottom right of this radar embed; otherwise, you may need to clear your cache.

Where is Hurricane Helene? What is the track, path of Helene in Florida?

Shown is the seven-day graphical tropical weather outlook from the National Hurricane Center in Miami. The above graphic will automatically update with each advisory from the hurricane center, which is at 5 a.m., 8 a.m., 11 a.m., 2 p.m., 5 p.m., 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. when there is an active storm such as Hurricane Helene.

When will tropical storm-force winds from Hurricane Helene arrive in Florida?

Live webcams: See conditions as the storm takes aim at Florida

Click on the blue camera icons around the map of Florida to see different live webcams in real-time.

Spaghetti models: Latest forecasts ahead of a Helene landfall

Special note about spaghetti models: Spaghetti model illustrations include an array of forecast tools and models, and not all are created equal. The Hurricane Center uses only the top four or five highest performing models to help make its forecasts.

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Contributing: Cheryl McCloud, USA TODAY Network-Florida

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Landfall for Helene is today. Here's when, where, path in Florida