Major Hurricane Helene

[Allsnow]

 

[wthrmn654]

Flight level winds 113-137 knots if I have my colors correct on the recon map?! Jeez

 

And lowest pressure I could see was 946.2mb 

[Wannabehippie]

9 minutes ago, Eskimo Joe said:

6:00 pm update from NHC maintains the 120 mph winds and pressure of 950 mb.

NHC says 125 MPH

 

6:00 PM EDT Thu Sep 26
Location: 28.0°N 84.5°W
Moving: NNE at 23 mph
Min pressure: 950 mb
Max sustained: 125 mph
 

[wthrmn654]

Nhc 6 pm winds are 125 mph.  Was corrected

[Eskimo Joe]

This has got to be a Cat 4 now.

[Blizzard22]

The Weather Channel just showed up a map showing 75-90 mph wind gusts for Atlanta tomorrow morning.

[Wannabehippie]

Is Helene predicted to come on shore at high tide, or low tide. Even with the wave heights as high as they are, it still will help a bit if it comes on shore at low tide.

[DDweatherman]

This eastern eye wall is passing 80 miles from Tampa Bay. Talk about dodging a completely catastrophic event. The close calls can only go on for so long. 

[Allsnow]

This will forever change the big bend coast line 

 

 

[40/70 Benchmark]

1 minute ago, Allsnow said:

 

All of those were weakening on approach, except for Michael and Andrew.

[nycwinter]

clearly on the way to cat 4 status this was so predictable we seen this so many times lately as these storms are approaching the gulf coast

[40/70 Benchmark]

Just now, DDweatherman said:

This eastern eye wall is passing 80 miles from Tampa Bay. Talk about dodging a completely catastrophic event. The close calls can only go on for so long. 

They should get some good surge.

[clskinsfan]

Jesus look at the NE quadrant fire up. Nasty MOFO. 

https://www.star.nesdis.noaa.gov/GOES/floater.php?stormid=AL092024#homePageLink

[NorthHillsWx]

The Michael comparisons can continue. Extremely diffluent ventilation with the interaction with the trough to the north and east and movement in line with shear vector. This isn’t going to be far from Michael intensity wise in a few hours. Satellite presentations are almost identical at this stage before landfall. The dueling VHTs is a menacing look and absolutely causing these rapid pressure falls. Just wow. Those mesovortices are beautiful to watch on radar, though the destructive potential increases with every radar update 

[Doc Jon]

3 minutes ago, Allsnow said:

 

That would be the RI going on.

[kat5hurricane]

3 minutes ago, 40/70 Benchmark said:

Hugo got a nice boost from the gulf stream on its way in, so it's similar with respect to the fact it was intensifying as well....it was a cat 2 after interaction with PR.

Yep, rode it right into the coast. Similarly scary situation unfolding now although in a mord sparsely populated area than Charleston with the core upon approach, hopefully.

[Master of Disaster]

2 minutes ago, Eskimo Joe said:

This has got to be a Cat 4 now.

Almost certainly is 

[MarkO]

Looking very impressive on satellite and symmetrical on radar. Eye seems to be clearing out.

[NorthHillsWx]

Recon more than justifies a cat 4 upgrade 

[wthrmn654]

My God, look at far east those crazy winds extend, not sure how much of that mixes down to  surface but I hope people run for there lives if they haven't yet! 

And to note, that is the buoy by the center, looks like it will go just east of it!

[40/70 Benchmark]

1 minute ago, kat5hurricane said:

Yep, rode it right into the coast. Similarly scary situation unfolding now although in a mord sparsely populated area than Charleston with the core upon approach, hopefully.

Well, Mclellanville was fairly sparsely populated, too...Charleston was speared, relatively speaking....like Miami in Andrew.

[Doc Jon]

4 minutes ago, Eskimo Joe said:

This has got to be a Cat 4 now.

If it ain't now it will be shortly.

[Newman]

...HELENE NOW AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS CATEGORY 4 HURRICANE...

6:20 PM EDT Thu Sep 26 Location: 28.0°N 84.5°W Moving: NNE at 23 mph Min pressure: 947 mb Max sustained: 130 mph

[Arnold214]

Always so fascinating to watch things unfold like this. I can see the low level strato cu near sfc level in the eye when zooming in now. Pressures continue to fall on my brother's Davis in Fort Myers even though the storm continues to move away.  

[George001]

Chances of category 5 at landfall?

[SnowGoose69]

1 minute ago, Blizzard22 said:

The Weather Channel just showed up a map showing 75-90 mph wind gusts for Atlanta tomorrow morning.

Yeah I heard that.  Makes no sense as just an hour or two ago they showed 50 which to me makes most sense and that might not happen til 10-11Z when the W-NW sting jet gets them 

[nycwinter]

they updated it to 130 mph but it is intensifying as we speak..

[DDweatherman]

1 minute ago, SnowGoose69 said:

Yeah I heard that.  Makes no sense as just an hour or two ago they showed 50 which to me makes most sense and that might not happen til 10-11Z when the W-NW sting jet gets them 

Agree with this. Meanwhile someone from VLD-MCN is going to gust 100+ I’m starting to think. 

[NorthHillsWx]

3 minutes ago, George001 said:

Chances of category 5 at landfall?

Not 0…

[DDweatherman]

Just now, DDweatherman said:

Agree with this. Meanwhile someone from VLD-MCN is going to gust 100+ I’m starting to think. 

Note to add that once this gets into that part of Georgia and VLD northward, we start getting into some pretty densely populated areas (Warner Robbins, Macon, Albany, Athens)