JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A day after declaring a state of emergency in 41 Florida counties, Gov. Ron DeSantis will hold a news conference Tuesday at the Emergency Operations Center in Tallahassee to provide an update on what is expected to become Hurricane Helene.
NOTE: News4JAX will stream the news conference live at 9:30 a.m.
So far, four local counties -- Alachua, Bradford, Columbia and Union -- are under the governor’s state of emergency order, which came Monday as the forecast called for a system brewing in the Caribbean to turn into a tropical depression or tropical storm during the next day or two as it moves north of the Gulf of Mexico.
Here are the Key messages for Tuesday early morning for Potential Tropical Cyclone Nine - Hurricane and Storm Surge Watches have been issued for the Gulf coast of Florida. More: https://t.co/tW4KeGe9uJ pic.twitter.com/mEzH6IFEC8
— National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) September 24, 2024
Further development and strengthening are expected after that and the storm is expected to become Hurricane Helene as it moves north before making landfall on Florida’s Gulf Coast, according to the latest track.
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The full list of counties under the governor’s order: Alachua, Bay, Bradford, Calhoun, Charlotte, Citrus, Collier, Columbia, Dixie, Escambia, Franklin, Gadsden, Gilchrist, Gulf, Hamilton, Hernando, Hillsborough, Holmes, Jackson, Jefferson, Lafayette, Lee, Leon, Levy, Liberty, Madison, Manatee, Marion, Monroe, Okaloosa, Pasco, Pinellas, Santa Rosa, Sarasota, Sumter, Suwannee, Taylor, Union, Wakulla, Walton, and Washington counties.