Hurricane Helene threatens Florida’s Big Bend, residents hope for the best

PANACEA – Wally Ford doesn’t plan to ride out Hurricane Helene.
A resident of Panacea, a community south of Tallahassee near the Gulf of Mexico, Ford was among people moving further inland as Hurricane Helene is forecast to crash into North Florida on Thursday with maximum sustained winds of 120 mph.
The storm is expected to create large amounts of debris, knock out electricity for days and create a massive storm surge in the Big Bend region.
“This one just looks like pretty much a sure thing that it is going to hit this area and be pretty intense,” Ford said Wednesday. “So, we don’t want to take a chance. This is an awful low-lying area.”
Jon Turner, the owner of Salty Donkey Restaurant, spent Wednesday moving food and other items from his recently opened Panacea eatery, which sits dockside on Dickerson Bay.
“I just pray for the best and that the storm surge doesn’t come up too high and tear a whole lot of stuff up, so we can come back to a restaurant again,” Turner said.
Like Ford, Turner wasn’t going to stay for the hurricane that is expected to be the Big Bend’s third in a little over a year.
Storm surge from Helene is forecast by the National Hurricane Center to exceed 12 feet in some areas, with water potentially rising to 20 feet along the coast between Carrabelle in Franklin County and the Suwannee River, according to the National Hurricane Center.
The hurricane center said Helene is forecast to reach the Big Bend coast Thursday evening. Florida Division of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie said on Wednesday that residents had little time left to evacuate.
“Tomorrow midday will be way too late,” Guthrie said Wednesday afternoon while at the state Emergency Operations Center in Tallahassee.
 The division has moved some workers to Escambia County as a backup. Tallahassee is expected to get slammed by the storm.
Guthrie said requests have already started coming from local governments for post-storm supplies, such as water.
Gov. Ron DeSantis said people in the Panhandle and Big Bend should start to see wind and rain Thursday morning.
“This thing’s going to be whipping through, it’s going to cause a lot of churn, and is going to drive that water,” DeSantis said.
Evacuation orders have been issued for low-lying areas in 16 counties.
In addition to 21,000 utility workers positioned to help restore power after the storm, the Florida National Guard has mobilized nearly 3,500 soldiers and airmen while the Florida State Guard has about 250 members ready to deploy.
St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport intends to close after the last flight arrives on Wednesday. It plans to reopen Friday.
Tampa International Airport and Tallahassee International Airport plan to suspend operations Thursday.
Major U.S. airlines have started to issue travel waivers for passengers flying in or out of the impacted airports to rebook without paying fare differences.
Port of Key West has closed, while operations have been limited at Port Tampa Bay, Port Manatee, and the Port of St. Petersburg.