Helene Now A Category 3 Hurricane

CRAWFORDVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Helene has strengthened into a major hurricane as it barrels across the Gulf of Mexico on a path to Florida. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Thursday afternoon that the hurricane is about 195 miles southwest of Tampa and has become a Category 3 hurricane with sustained winds of at least 111 mph. The huge storm’s center is expected to make landfall in the Big Bend area of Florida’s northwestern coast Thursday evening. Hurricane warnings and flash flood warnings extended far beyond the coast up into south-central Georgia. The governors of Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas and Virginia have all declared emergencies in their states