Thursday was a white-knuckle night for people in the Florida panhandle as Hurricane Helene, a monster Category 4 storm, made landfall with catastrophic wind and high water.
Helene brought dramatic images along the Gulf Coast before it collided with Florida’s Big Bend.
NBC 5 reporter Meredith Yeomans’s story hits close to home. Generations of her relatives call Tallahassee home, and while they’ve endured numerous hurricanes, they can’t recall a storm of Helene’s magnitude.
Concerns in Florida's capital city include power outages, torrential rain and whether its massive live oak trees can withstand 130 mph wind.
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“It’s the first time I’ve been in a Category 4. It’s the first time I’ve ever been in a direct hit,” said Meredith’s mother Marilyn Rett.
Tallahassee is not under a mandatory evacuation order like several counties along the coast. For some, shelters are the safest place to be.
"It's big. It’s size [and] wind speed; I just felt like this was different. It was the best thing to do,” said Norman Scarbrough who is staying at a shelter.
Millions in Florida and Georgia are bracing for a violent night. Meantime, help from Texas is standing by.
A team from Southern Baptists of Texas is spending the night in Mississippi and will make their way to Tallahassee Friday to start setting up their mobile kitchen.
“Our message for the people of Florida, for Tallahassee, would be that we’re praying. We’ll be praying against the storm. We’re praying for those who will be responding to help you all after the storm,” said Scottie Stice, disaster relief director for Southern Baptists of Texas.
