Hurricane Helene's arrival in Florida is expected to bring a life-threatening storm surge of up to 20 feet for some parts of the state.
A Storm Surge Warning is in place for the entire Florida coastline, including the Tampa Bay region. Remember: hide from the wind; run from the water.
The worst storm surge is expected to be from Citrus County northward around the Big Bend to approximately Carrabelle. A storm surge of 15-20 feet above ground level is possible across all of that region and residents along the coast are being encouraged to evacuate.
Forecast Storm Surge Values
- Citrus County and northward: 15 - 20 feet
- Hernando and Pasco County: 8 - 15 feet
- Pinellas, Hillsborough, and Manatee Counties: 5 - 8 feet
- Sarasota County: 4 - 7 feet
The life-threatening storm surge could start to retreat after midnight Friday morning.
Here's more information about storm surge and an explanation of storm surge warnings:
![Storm Surge Explained](https://ewscripps.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/67349d0/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1200x1200+0+0/resize/1200x1200!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fewscripps-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F3e%2Fcc%2F5575023242f1ae68a5a513f6bb2d%2Ffb-post-surge-explained.jpg)
![Storm Surge Warning Explainer](https://ewscripps.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/4103cc4/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1200x1200+0+0/resize/1200x1200!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fewscripps-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F21%2F0c%2F18ef0009422e94d3c8e7dd147895%2Ffb-post-surge-warning.jpg)
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