At the time of this post, Helene has intensified from a tropical storm to a hurricane and is expected to slam into Florida’s Big Bend as a Category 3 storm late this Thursday.
Governor Ron DeSantis expanded an emergency declaration to 61 counties this past Tuesday, ahead of the storm even having formed, saying, “I think the fact that this would be forecasted as a major at this point, without formation, shows that this has a potential to be a really, really significant storm.”
The City of Orlando’s Emergency Operations Center is monitoring the storm and will partially activate at Level II at 9 a.m. on Thursday, September 26.
“With the heavy rains we’ve experienced over the last few weeks, I want to encourage everyone to closely monitor this storm and prepare yourselves, your family and your employees for potential impacts,”
– MAYOR DYER
Curious about whether you should stay or not? Consider what type of home you live in and what Evacuation Zone you live in. Click HERE for your closest evacuation route care of FloridaDisaster.org, which includes data on hurricane surge flooding. And be sure to follow @citybeautiful and @orlandopolice for updated information leading up to and during the storm.
UPDATED HURRICANE TRACKING INFO
POWER GRID
Is your power out? Assuming you’re on your phone, you can use THIS LINK to report an outage with OUC or THIS LINK for Duke Energy. OUC customers can also text “REG” to 69682 to sign up for Outage Alerts on their phones.
TRANSPORTATION
- 9/25 Brightline says it will continue to operate a normal schedule at this time.
- 9/25 LYNX – Central Florida Regional Transportation is monitoring the storm and all services will continue to operate as scheduled until further notice. I winds reach a sustained 35 mph services will be suspended.
- 9/25 Orlando international Airport – The airport is open and operational. The weather may lead to some delays and cancellations.
- 9/25 All Scooters and Bikes will be removed from the city right-of-way.
- 9/25 City Parking Garages will remain open.
- 9/25 SUNRAIL – will not operate on Thursday.
CIVICS, VENUES, BUSINESSES, AND PARKS
- ALL NEIGHBORHOOD CENTERS AND POOLS will close this Thursday.
- The city’s After School Program will continue to operate for young residents that are currently enrolled until 6 p.m. at those sites.
- Audubon Center for Birds of Prey will be closed on September 26.
- Harry P. Leu Gardens will close this Thursday.
- Mennello Museum will close on September 26.
- Morse Museum will close on Wednesday, September 25, and reopen on Friday.
- All Orange County Public Library branches will close on Thursday.
- The Orange County Regional History Center will be closed on Thursday.
- Orlando Science Center says that barring any travel advisories and restrictions from the Emergency Operations Center, Orlando Science Center will offer break camps for students in grades K-5 on Thursday, September 26. Should conditions change, caregivers will be notified of early closures.
- Palmer’s Garden and Goods will close Thursday and reopen Friday morning.
- Rollins College Museum of Art will close today, Wednesday, September 25, and reopen on Friday, storm permitting.
- Solid Waste pickup will resume as scheduled unless Orange County closes the landfill. Do not place tree trimmings or loose yard waste at the curb. There will be no Waste Pro services in Winter Park on Thursday. UPDATE – Trash, recycling, and yard waste collection will conclude at 2 p.m. Thursday.
- Winter Park Library will be closed on September 26.
SCHOOLS
- Full Sail University will close on Thursday, September 26. Classes and labs will move to remote ops via Zoom.
- Orange County Public Schools – Schools will be closed on Thursday, Sept. 26 and all after-school activities must end by 6 p.m. Sept. 25. Any decision to close schools on Friday, Sept. 27 will be determined by the impact on Orange County and the timing of the storm.
- Rollins College will close and cancel all classes, including online classes, for Thursday, September 26 and plans to reopen Friday. All residential housing will remain open and operational.
- UCF – In anticipation of Tropical Storm Helene, UCF will suspend campus operations and all classes, including online classes, Thursday, Sept. 26.
- Valencia College – will be closed on Thursday, 9/26, due to the potential impact of Hurricane Helene. In-person and online classes will be canceled, while Wednesday’s classes will continue as scheduled.
BUSINESSES DOING IT RIGHT
- Digress Wine is having a Hurricane Party and will stay open.
- Orlando Science Center says that barring any travel advisories and restrictions from the Emergency Operations Center, Orlando Science Center will offer break camps for students in grades K-5 on Thursday, September 26. Should conditions change, caregivers will be notified of early closures.
- Swirlery Wine Bar is offering 15% off on all to-go wines.
- The last tee time at Winter Park Golf Course is 11 a.m. Thursday, September 26.
- The Winter Park Tennis Center will close at 1 p.m.
- The Hammered Lamb is hosting a hurricane party from 11 a.m. to close today with $8 hurricane cocktails available for purchase.
- Sampaguita Ice Cream is offering 50% off all baked good items in their pastry case from 1-3 p.m. and will stop serving halo halo and soft cream at 3 p.m.
- Ravenous Pig is hosting a Hurricane Happy Hour starting at 4 p.m.
- Drunken Monkey is open or regular hours until 8 p.m. Thursday, and it’s their 17th anniversary!
EVENTS
- MindTravel, the silent piano concert at Lake Eola Park has been rescheduled.
- Winter Park Playhouse has canceled its 2 p.m. Thursday performance of Snapshots.
- The Taglish Takeover at Bar Kada has been moved to Friday, September 27.