Some canceled, delayed flights at Savannah-Hilton Head after Helene’s wake in Southeast
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Hurricane Helene
Expected to reach Florida’s Big Bend region late Thursday, the predicted incoming impacts for Hurricane Helene triggered a tropical storm watch for the Lowcountry.
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On Friday morning, several outbound flights from Savannah-Hilton Head International had been canceled as a result of the cancellation of other inbound flights from Thursday afternoon and evening.
Lori Lynah, the airport’s spokesperson, said it is likely that other than a few scattered cancellations and delays throughout Friday, flight schedules should be back to normal by the afternoon.
Thursday evening flight
Savannah-Hilton Head International airport had several flight cancellations and delays Thursday evening as Hurricane Helene rapidly moved, intensifying into a Category 4 storm and expected to make landfall in Florida’s Panhandle.
Arriving flights from Miami, Newark, New Jersey; New York City and Chicago have been canceled, and seven other arriving flights have been delayed. As of Thursday evening, only one departing flight had been delayed.
Lori Lynah, the airport’s director of marketing and air service development, said Thursday evening that she does not expect widespread flight cancellations into Friday.
At 6:20 p.m. Thursday, Helene intensified into a Category 4 hurricane. The storm was 120 miles west of Tampa, Florida, moving toward the north-northeast near 23 mph, with sustained wind speeds of 130 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center advisory.
A tornado watch was issued for Beaufort County at about 8:35 a.m Thursday morning and was set to expire by 1:15 a.m. Friday. The county is also under a tropical storm watch until 7:15 p.m. Thursday.
The Lowcountry is likely to face strong winds, heavy rain, possible tornadoes and rough seas.
This story was originally published September 27, 2024 at 12:16 AM.
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