Helene death toll rises as storm slams southeast: Live tracker
The remnants of Helene continue to slam the southeast Friday with more than 3 dozen people dead across multiple states and several others trapped in rubble after the storm made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend region late Thursday night as a monster Category 4 hurricane with winds of 140 mph.
At least 38 deaths have been reported so far, including 11 in Georgia, seven in Florida, two in North Carolina and 18 in South Carolina, and officials fear that number could continue to climb.
We're tracking Helene live in the media player above. Click here for live radar.
Here's a look at Helene's path, maps and the aftermath from impacted communities.
Where is Helene now?
Latest on Helene. (FOX Weather)
As of 4 p.m. Friday, Helene had ripped through the Carolinas and is now hovering over Kentucky and West Viriginia.
Helene's path
Forecast cone for Helene. (FOX Weather)
Helene made landfall about 10 miles west-southwest of Perry, Florida, at 11:10 p.m. ET Thursday, with wind gusts in Florida and southern Georgia clocked as high as 100 mph. Impacts have been felt across the Southeast and into portions of the mid-Atlantic as the monster storm pushes farther inland.
Helene's winds weakened to tropical storm levels as it moved well into Georgia, but its onslaught of torrential rains led to extreme and catastrophic flooding.
Twenty Flash Flood Emergencies – the most dire flood alert issued by the NWS – were spread across Georgia, western North Carolina from Asheville to the Charlotte area, and portions of South Carolina and Virginia. That included the first-ever Flash Flood Emergency in Atlanta, where the city broke a 138-year-old record for two-day rainfall at 11.18 inches. The 20 Flash Flood Emergencies issued Friday is the most in a single day.
In North Carolina, record rains have flooded the Broad River to levels that have overtopped the Lake Lure Dam, threatening its failure. Officials have issued emergency evacuation orders downstream concerned about deadly flash flooding. As much as as 20 inches of rain could fall in the area by the end of the weekend.
The rainfall forecast for the Southeast through Friday. (FOX Weather)
Will its remnants affect New York?
As of Friday morning, the New York City area is not expected to be impacted by the storm. We can, however, expect a rainy weekend.
Helene's aftermath
Hurricane Helene left an enormous path of destruction across Florida and the entire southeastern U.S. on Friday, killing at least 40 people in four states, snapping trees like twigs, tearing apart homes and sending rescue crews on desperate missions to save people from floodwaters.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said dozens of people were still trapped in buildings damaged by the Category 4 hurricane. The storm had maximum sustained winds of 140 mph (225 kph) when it made landfall late Thursday in a sparsely populated region in Florida’s rural Big Bend area, home to fishing villages and vacation hideaways where Florida’s Panhandle and peninsula meet.
The damage extended hundreds of miles to the north, with flooding as far away as northeast Tennessee, where a "dangerous rescue situation" was unfolding after 54 people were moved to the roof of the Unicoi County Hospital while rapid waters flooded the facility, according to Ballad Health.
In North Carolina, a lake used in the movie "Dirty Dancing" overtopped a dam. People in surrounding neighborhoods were evacuated, although there were no immediate concerns it was about to fail.
Multiple hospitals in southern Georgia were without power, and authorities were "having a hard time getting to places," so teams with chainsaws were "working to free up roads," Kemp told a news conference. Tornadoes also were confirmed.
WATCH: FOX WEATHER METEOROLOGIST RESCUES WOMAN FROM RUSHING FLOODWATERS IN ATLANTA
Other storms to watch
Meanwhile, Hurricane John weakened again into a tropical storm Thursday evening after strengthening back to a Category 1 hurricane earlier the same day. The so-called "zombie storm," a storm that weakens and then strengthens again after returning to warm waters, brought flooding and landslides to Mexico’s southwest coast.
Forecasters said Tropical Storm Isaac strengthened on Friday into a hurricane in the open waters of the Atlantic Ocean and could cause dangerous waves in parts of Bermuda.
This story includes reporting from FOX Weather and the Associated Press.