The Associated Press

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla.

Friday, September 22, 2000

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. – The center of a weakened Tropical Storm Helene came ashore today in the Florida Panhandle, bringing bands of heavy rain to residents along the Gulf Coast.

Rain of 5 to 8 inches of rain was expected in many areas.

The storm’s center made landfall with top winds near 45 mph at about 8 a.m. near Fort Walton Beach, about 40 miles west of Panama City Beach. The heaviest rain fell to the east of the center, coming ashore in bands interspersed with periods of sunny skies and blustery wind.

Port St. Joe received 4 1/2 inches of rain by 7 a.m., said Marshall Nelson, Gulf County Division of Emergency Management coordinator.

”We have several low-lying areas that are flooded,” he said, but added that was not unusual.

for summer rains.

The wet storm, which had weakened through the night from its strongest winds of 65 mph, was expected to weaken further as it moved into southeastern Alabama and southwestern Georgia at near 12 mph.

”It’s going to be a rainfall event; everything will be to the east of the center,” said Bill Frederick, a meteorologist at the National Hurricane Center in Miami. ”Anything to the west of the center really isn’t going to get very much.”

Tropical storm warnings had stretched from Pascagoula, Miss., to Florida’s Aucilla River, southeast of Tallahassee. Flood warnings were up for parts of the Florida, including areas still soggy from the weekend passage of Tropical Storm Gordon, and a flood watch was posted in northern Georgia.

Heavy rain preceded the storm’s center by several hours, occasionally drenching Panama City Beach and points east early Friday.

Mandatory evacuations are not required for a storm of Helene’s intensity, but authorities prepared disaster plans anyway. A voluntary evacuation was in effect in coastal areas of Walton County and for mobile homes and campgrounds in Okaloosa County.

Military planes were evacuated from Panhandle bases and classes were canceled at some schools.

Although some people who had shutters were closing them, Pensacola Beach resident Barry Silber said Thursday that no one was boarding up.

”I think everybody probably thinks this is a small one – no worries,” he said.

Tropical Storm Isaac, which strengthened from a depression late Thursday, posed no threat to land. The storm is in the far eastern Atlantic, south of the Cape Verde Islands off northwestern Africa.

On the Net:

National Hurricane Center: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov