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    Cruise Lines Change Their Itineraries to Avoid Helene’s Impact

    Several cruise lines operating out of Florida’s west coast and the Gulf of Mexico altered their itineraries on Wednesday to avoid Hurricane Helene’s path.Carnival Cruise Line canceled port stops at Cozumel, Mexico, for several ships. including Carnival Paradise, Valor, Breeze and Horizon. Two ships, Carnival Elation and Carnival Paradise, could not return to Jacksonville and Tampa after the ports were closed on Wednesday, but the cruise line said it tentatively expected ports to reopen on Friday, depending on its post-storm assessment.“The safety of our guests and crew remains our priority, and our ships are sailing a safe distance from the storm,” Carnival said in a statement on Wednesday.Royal Caribbean has also adjusted the itineraries of seven west Caribbean sailings, including Independence of the Seas, Grandeur of the Seas and Serenade of the Seas, which will be making port stops in Nassau, in the Bahamas, instead of Cozumel.Guests onboard MSC Cruise line’s Seashore were informed that they would not be able to return to Port Canaveral in Florida on Thursday because of high winds and would instead have a bonus day at sea. More

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    Hurricane Idalia Destroyed His Home. He’s Riding Out Helene Next Door.

    The pieces of paper taped to mailboxes and front doors on Wednesday carried a stark warning: “You must evacuate your mobile home by tomorrow morning due to Hurricane Helene.”The Twin City mobile home complex in St. Petersburg was buzzing with activity Wednesday evening as people responded to the warning, which wasn’t much of a surprise to residents because their neighborhood has become increasingly prone to flooding over the last few years. Many were lifting cars onto concrete blocks, packing up their pets and preparing to leave the complex of tidy, pastel-colored homes.But some planned to stay. Ryann Ivins, 59, walked his dog, Dexter, during a break in the rain. Helene’s approach made him nervous, he said, because last August, Hurricane Idalia brought hip-high water into the complex and inside his home. He recalled carrying Dexter, who can’t swim, through the floodwaters to higher ground at 4 a.m.That storm cost him baby pictures of both himself and his children, as well as photos of the hot-rod cars he had built over the years. “It’s like half my life got erased,” he said.A few months ago, he moved into a new trailer in the same complex. He bought brand new furniture for his two children, ages 10 and 11. Now, he’s worried about what Helene could do. So while he intends to stay through the storm to keep an eye on his belongings, he is taking other precautions.“I already got my kids out of there,” he said. “I moved all my stuff up. And pray. That’s about all I can do at this point.”He said he’ll go on living at Twin City as long as he can stand the rising waters.“It was real nice for a while,” he said. “Then, all of a sudden, it started to flood.” More

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    Maps: Tracking Tropical Storm Helene

    Helene was a tropical storm in the Caribbean Sea Tuesday morning Eastern time, the National Hurricane Center said in its latest advisory. The tropical storm had sustained wind speeds of 45 miles per hour.  All times on the map are Eastern. By The New York Times Where will it rain? Flash flooding can occur well […] More

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    Map: Tracking Tropical Storm Pulasan

    Pulasan was a tropical storm in the Philippine Sea Tuesday morning Japan time, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center said in its latest advisory. The tropical storm had sustained wind speeds of 40 miles per hour.  All times on the map are Japan time. By The New York Times Where will it rain? Flash flooding can […] More

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    Warnings Issued as Storm Looms Near the Carolinas

    The storm system could become the next named storm, Helene, on Monday. Forecasters are warning of floods and storm surge along the Carolina coasts hit hard by Debby in August.A storm system was spinning off the coast of the Carolinas Monday, threatening to bring winds up to 50 miles per hour, widespread flooding and storm surge to an area that was already battered by Tropical Storm Debby last month.What is currently being called Potential Tropical Cyclone Eight will likely make landfall near Georgetown, S.C., late on Monday. While a few factors may prevent it from becoming the next named storm, Helene, the hazards will be the same.Forecasters are warning of widespread flooding, with four to eight inches of rain and a few feet of storm surge expected.Tropical Storm Debby brought more that a foot of rain across some parts of the Carolinas in August, submerging vehicles and even putting waste sites at risk. Forecasters did not expect as much rain for Monday. Tropical storm warnings were issued from south of Charleston, S.C., to north of Wilmington, N.C.Key things to knowMost of the rain will fall near or north of the storm’s center, with widespread totals of four to eight inches and a few areas getting nearly 10 inches of rainfall in North Carolina.Forecasters out of Wilmington, N.C., said they had very low confidence in the exact details of where the heaviest rain would fall and that the location of the worst rainfall could change.Even with no name, the storm could produce a storm surge of one to three feet along the coast.As the storm’s center nears land this afternoon, it is expected to weaken but still have tropical storm-force winds of over 39 m.p.h. and higher gusts. More

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    Map: Tracking Tropical Storm Gordon

    Gordon was a tropical storm in the North Atlantic Ocean Friday morning Eastern time, the National Hurricane Center said in its latest advisory. The tropical storm had sustained wind speeds of 40 miles per hour.  All times on the map are Eastern. By The New York Times Where will it rain? Flash flooding can occur […] More