Helene is, as of this writing on Thursday afternoon, a "dangerous major hurricane," and conditions are expected to rapidly worsen in the next several hours as landfall approaches.
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The west coast of the Florida peninsula saw storm surge and rain all day, but what was visible Thursday may be deceptive, as this intensifying storm will be significantly more violent and dangerous for the Big Bend — along with areas to its north — than it was for the rest of the state.
The following webcams are in or near NOAA's forecast cone for Helene, meaning they're likely to be directly in the path of the center of the hurricane. As these spots take what may be a direct hit, the full power of Hurricane Helene can be better understood by watching it in action.
At the approximate western limit of NOAA's forecast cone is the inhabited section of St. George Island, a barrier island across the Apalachicola Bay from the mainland. This webcam usually shows a placid swimming beach called Bob Sike's Cut. It may soon not show any land at all.
Around the eastern limit of the forecast cone is Steinhatchee, a community in Taylor County. This webcam view — situated at a dock behind a seafood restaurant — faces inland from the mouth of the Steinhatchee River, where it empties into Deadman Bay. The visible effects of storm surge on the river tonight will be dramatic, and the webcam will shift into its night vision mode to broadcast them .
