Helene is due to make landfall by Thursday night and impacts to the Miami Valley are just hours away. Adjustments to the forecast track have caused changes to our forecast in the form of higher wind gusts and slightly higher rainfall totals.
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Storm Center 7′s Nick Dunn is closely monitoring Hurricane Helene and the impacts we’ll see here in the Miami Valley. He’ll have the latest timing and track of the storm and how much rain we’ll see over the coming days LIVE on News Center 7 at 5:00 and 6:00.
Ahead of the storm, a wind advisory has been issued for all counties in the region except Auglaize, Champaign, Mercer, and Shelby counties starting at 10 a.m. Friday through midnight. Sustained winds up to 35 mph are expected with gusts between 45 and 55 mph possible.
Winds will begin to pick up later tonight into Friday morning. Steady showers arrive in time for the morning commute leading to wet roads. By the mid to late afternoon hours, heavier rain is set to arrive as winds gusts crank up to tropical storm force. For reference, Tropical Storm Force winds start at 39 mph, and the current forecast is for 45-55 mph wind gusts.
Isolated gusts to 60mph can not be ruled out across the far southern counties.
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As for rainfall totals through Saturday night, we expect them to still vary from a half inch to 2 inches, however, rain banding may allow for a few locally lower or higher totals. This will make for messy conditions during high school football games.
The strongest winds will subside after 8 p.m., but breezy conditions look to linger into the early overnight hours.
Scattered wind damage and power outages are certainly possible given the higher wind forecast. Any further adjustments to the track of Helene may lead to additional forecast changes, so staying tuned to the latest forecasts will be imperative.
This story will continue to be updated.
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