Weakened Helene moves over Kentucky after deadly storm surge: forecast

The system will continue to weaken as it meanders across western Kentucky on Saturday, possibly near the Tennessee border. Light winds and rain will move across the central Appalachians through Sunday.

The Southeast continues to grapple with the devastating aftermath of Hurricane Helene, which brought fierce winds and historic flooding that killed at least 39 people.

Helene, which weakened to a post-tropical cyclone on Friday, made landfall late Thursday near Perry, Florida, with winds of 140 mph. The system was the first known Category 4 storm to hit the Big Bend region of Florida since records began in 1851.

The system will continue to weaken as it meanders over western Kentucky on Saturday, possibly near the Tennessee border, according to AccuWeather senior meteorologist Bob Smerbeck. General wind gusts of 20-25 mph are expected, with gusts of 30-35 mph possible. Light winds and rain will move across the central Appalachians through Sunday.

“As we get into Sunday it really loses its impact. I mean, parts of the Ohio Valley may only see 10 to 20 mph winds,” Smerbeck told USA TODAY on Friday.

Helene is expected to move through Virginia and southern Pennsylvania with moderate rain before heading into the Atlantic Ocean on Tuesday.

Rain is expected in Central Florida, Tennessee due to cleanup efforts

Showers and thunderstorms are expected across Central Florida and throughout the state's peninsula on Saturday, while cities like Tampa Bay are still dealing with storm surge. High humidity is also to be expected, Smerbeck added.

“It looks like the coverage area for showers and thunderstorms in Central Florida will shrink a bit on Sunday, but even on Sunday there could still be isolated storms in places like Tampa,” Smerbeck said.

While little-affected areas like central and eastern Georgia will see dry weather through the weekend, Smerbeck said widespread showers are expected in Tennessee into the Appalachian Mountains.

“There will be no walls of heavy rain. There will be more randomness, but people are trying to clean up and there will still be a few downpours in the southern Appalachians,” he added.

Helene unleashed chaos late Thursday that caused multiple power outages, leveled homes and capsized boats across the storm-ravaged region. Across the Southeast, first responders made hundreds of water rescues amid heavy rain and ongoing coastal flooding in western Florida.

Helene tracker for the tropical depression

Tropical Depression Helene Spaghetti Models

The figures cover a range of forecasting tools and models, and not all are created equal. The hurricane center only uses the four or five best-performing models in its forecasts.

Helene tracker for the tropical depression

Tropical Depression Helene Spaghetti Models

Florida weather map

US Weather Watches and Warnings

National Weather Radar

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