Weather will continue to deteriorate across South Florida on Wednesday as Helene continues to strengthen and move northward.
As of 2 p.m., Helene was a hurricane with maximum sustained winds at 80 mph moving north-northwest at 10 mph. It is expected to rapidly intensify into a major hurricane in the next 9 hours.
All of South Florida is currently under a Tropical Storm Warning.
Clouds continue to increase over South Florida and will stick around through tomorrow. The outer bands of Helene will move in and out of South Florida throughout the day, increasing in frequency as we push into Wednesday evening and into Thursday morning.
Area-wide, we are expecting 2-4″ of rain from this system after all is said and done. However, localized areas could receive more if caught in some of the stronger bands.
Breezy conditions Wednesday will turn into windy conditions Wednesday evening. Sustained winds for Miami-Dade and Broward will top out around 15-25 mph sustained, gusting at tropical storm force reaching 40-50 mph.
The keys will see stronger winds due to their closer proximity to Helene. Expect sustained winds around 25-35 mph with wind gusts getting as high as 60 mph at times Wednesday night and into early Thursday.
Mostly cloudy and breezy conditions will continue into our Friday with scattered storms. However, clouds will gradually begin to break up as the day progresses on Friday and winds will gradually relax.
Lingering moisture left behind by Helene will help to keep rain chances around South Florida through the weekend.
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