As Helene heads to Florida, many residents are preparing for a hurricane, possibly a major category hurricane, as many schools and business get ready to close.

Storm surge and winds will be the main issues with this system. The system will be increasing speed therefore widespread flooding won't be the biggest issue as recent storms have caused. Nonetheless, flash flooding will be possible over coastal and inland areas. Our WeatherRadar shows rain bands moving across the entire peninsula and the highest accumulations of about 10 inches falling over the Panhandle and the west coast of Florida.

Residents in the Tampa Bay area are prepping, filling up sand bags to protect their homes and business from the water. Water can come from storm surge if you are close to the coast, but also from the rain ponding in streets as well as lake and river levels increasing and overflowing. Florida's west coast has been impacted by several tropical systems in recent years, Debby last month caused storm surge and flooding. Also, Southwest Florida has been dealing with several frequent rain episodes which have damage many homes.

We have our weather reporter Jonathan Petramala who will be along the West Coast of Florida. He will bring you updates as the storm nears. We will activate our Task Force and have our entire team of meteorologists getting you the latest on Helene on our app, through weather alerts and manual alerts from our meteorologists and social media platforms. Make heed the warnings and follow authorities' orders.