Florida residents in the direct path of Hurricane Helene are preparing for impact.

Helene steadily strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane early Thursday morning and is poised to strike the northeastern Gulf coast tonight as a major hurricane, bringing catastrophic winds and storm surge into Florida’s Big Bend from east of Apalachicola to Florida’s Nature Coast, centered on Apalachee Bay.

Late on Friday, the strong disturbance dubbed Potential Tropical Cyclone Four earlier in the day by the National Hurricane Center finally gained enough organization south of Cuba to be classified as a Tropical Depression. By Saturday morning, hurricane watches had been issued for Florida’s sweeping Big Bend, from just west of Apalachicola to near Crystal River.

A 9-mile stretch of Florida sugar-white sand in an unspoiled natural setting alongside the Gulf of Mexico is the nation’s best beach for 2023.

Mindy was organized enough to be designated a tropical storm when winds over 40 mph were measured on a buoy in the Gulf of Mexico. That happened yesterday afternoon, then last night the system made landfall near Apalachicola.

Tropical depression Mindy has dumped rain along the Georgia and South Carolina seacoasts during its trek over land and is now moving well offshore into the Atlantic Ocean.

The Supreme Court has ruled unanimously for Georgia in its long-running dispute with Florida over water.

The Supreme Court tried Monday to inject some mystery into its second consideration of a long-running dispute between Georgia and Florida over water that flows from the Atlanta suburbs to the Gulf of Mexico. (AP Photo/Phil Sears, File)WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court tried Monday to inject some mystery into its second consideration of a long-running dispute between Georgia and Florida over water that flows from the Atlanta suburbs to the Gulf of Mexico. Florida's lawsuit against Georgia was filed directly in the Supreme Court, which is mainly an appellate court but hears disputes between states. The court appointed a special master to evaluate the case, and he initially recommended that Georgia should prevail. The court appointed a new special master, who also recommended the court side with Georgia.