Helene makes landfall, watching new area in western Caribbean

Helene is now a Post-Tropical cyclone over Kentucky with 35 mph winds after making landfall Thursday night around the Big Bend of Florida as a Category 4 140 mph hurricane. It has already dumped over 30 inches of rain across parts of North Carolina and is the cause of massive flash flooding across several states. Helene will still bring a flash flood threat across the Tennessee and Ohio Valleys as it falls apart over the weekend. Weather for Houston will be closer to perfect this weekend with pleasant mornings and warm but sunny afternoons. Temperatures will get a bit hotter next week with low rain chances returning Thursday and Friday. Hurricane Isaac and Tropical Storm Joyce are both in the central Atlantic but are not expected to be a threat to land at this point. Two areas are being monitored with a low 30% chance for tropical development over the next week. One is in the eastern Atlantic and the other is in the western Caribbean. Keep checking back for updates and make sure to download FOX Local on your smart TV for the latest!

Watch: Drone video from inside Hurricane Helene

A drone intentionally steered into Hurricane Helene in the eastern Gulf of Mexico took video of the strengthening cyclone in the hours before its was set to make landfall on Florida’s Gulf Coast.

Live updates: Hurricane Helene forecast to hit Florida as Category 4 storm

Helene strengthened into a hurricane on Wednesday and is expected to strengthen further – potentially becoming a major hurricane – before making landfall over Florida on Thursday. Life-threatening storm surge, damaging winds, torrential rain, and flooding are possible.