By otakuyassine3@gmail.com 
The Carolinas unite to recover from Hurricane Helene
Trucks packed with donations and hope head to North Carolina as South Carolinians unite to support their northern neighbors impacted by Hurricane Helene.
Tropical Storm Milton formed in the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday as forecasters expect the storm to quickly strengthen into a hurricane and race toward Florida in the next few days.
Milton is expected to develop into a “potentially very impactful hurricane” and impact the Florida peninsula Tuesday or Wednesday, Jamie Rhome, the deputy director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami, said Saturday afternoon during an online briefing.
Milton is expected have maximum sustained winds of 110 mph when it makes landfall on the Gulf coast of Florida – near St. Petersburg and Tampa – late Tuesday or early Wednesday. “That’s right on a Category 2-Category 3” hurricane, Rhome said.
Though all hurricanes produce life-threatening winds, hurricanes rated Category 3 and higher are known as major hurricanes. Major hurricanes can cause devastating to catastrophic wind damage and loss of life. Hurricanes of all categories can produce deadly storm surge, rain-induced floods and tornadoes.
On Friday, forecasters were especially worried about torrential rainfall from the system.
On Saturday afternoon, the storm was located about 220 miles north-northeast of Veracruz, Mexico. Milton has maximum sustained winds of 40 mph and is expected to quickly move east-northeast across the Gulf of Mexico.
Rapid strengthening is expected as the system moves across the central and eastern part of the Gulf with a hurricane forming Monday or Tuesday. The west coast of the Florida peninsula can expect life-threatening storm surge and winds beginning late Tuesday or Wednesday – less than two weeks after Hurricane Helene brought devastation to the Southeast.
“Regardless of where the storm tracks, it’s going to produce a large area of heavy rain and potential flooding,” Rhome said.
No evacuations have been ordered, Rhome said, but they may be necessary. Residents in the Florida peninsula should have their hurricane plan in place, the center said, and follow subsequent forecasts and official notices.
Meanwhile, Hurricane Kirk is expected to generate swells in the Atlantic Ocean affecting the East Coast of the U.S. this weekend, according to the National Hurricane Center.
October hurricane forecast: Brace for the ‘return of big hurricanes’
Tropical Storm Milton path tracker
Tropical Storm Milton spaghetti models
Illustrations include an array of forecast tools and models, and not all are created equal. The hurricane center uses only the top four or five highest performing models to help make its forecasts.
Hurricane Kirk swells to hit US East Coast
Kirk was located about 1000 miles northeast of the Northern Leeward Islands and its swells are expected to spread westward to the U.S. East Coast, Atlantic Canada, and the Bahamas Saturday night and Sunday, and to the Azoreson Monday, the hurricane center said Saturday. The swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions, the NHC said.
Currently a Category 3 hurricane, Kirk has sustained winds near 120 mph with stronger gusts, with hurricane-force winds extending out to 60 miles from its center. The storm, which is moving north-northwest about 16 mph, is expected to remain a hurricane for the next several days, but will weaken as it makes a turn toward the northeast on Sunday, the NHC said.
Hurricane Kirk path tracker
Hurricane Kirk spaghetti models
Illustrations include an array of forecast tools and models, and not all are created equal. The hurricane center uses only the top four or five highest performing models to help make its forecasts.
If path tracker and spaghetti models are not displaying on your screen, you can view them here.
Hurricane Leslie strengthens
A Category 1 hurricane, Leslie is located in the tropical east Atlantic about 785 miles west-southwest of the southernmost Cabo Verde Islands, the center said Saturday. Leslie, which is not expected to impact land, is expected to continue moving west-northwest at about 7 mph, but begin moving northwest Saturday night into Tuesday.
Leslie has maximum sustained winds of near 80 mph with higher gusts and could strengthen through Saturday, but is expected to gradually weaken beginning Sunday.
Hurricane Leslie path tracker
Hurricane Leslie spaghetti models
Illustrations include an array of forecast tools and models, and not all are created equal. The hurricane center uses only the top four or five highest performing models to help make its forecasts.
If path tracker and spaghetti model are not displaying on your screen, you can view them here.
(This story has been updated to add new information and to correct a misspelling/typo.)
Contributing: Kim Luciani and Kimberly Miller, USA TODAY Network. Doyle Rice, USA TODAY.
Follow Mike Snider on X and Threads: @mikesnider & mikegsnider.
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