Hurricane Helene to bring cloudy conditions, rain to Philly region. What to know

Hurricane Helene is expected to intensify, accelerate and make landfall in Florida sometime Thursday evening.

According to the National Hurricane Center, Helene has been upgraded to a Category 4 hurricane -- packing over 115 mph winds -- before it makes landfall.

The storm is threatening an “unsurvivable” storm surge in northwestern parts of Florida as well as damaging winds, rains and flash floods hundreds of miles inland across much of the southeastern U.S., forecasters said.

The storm is moving so fast that it may still be considered as a Category 1 hurricane when it gets to the Atlanta, Georgie area on Friday.

Here's what to know about Helene's potential impact on the Philadelphia region.

Impact of Hurricane Helene on Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware

While our region won’t see any direct impact from the hurricane, the First Alert Weather Team says the moisture fueled by the storm will be heading our way.

Specifically, a band of showers moving into the area Friday evening into Saturday morning could bring downpours and thunderstorms (while potentially putting a damper on Friday night and Saturday morning plans and sporting events).

Extensive cloud coverage should keep conditions gloomy and bring some rain to our area Thursday and earlier on Friday. Not all of that rain will be due to Helene, as the front swinging through brings clouds and on-and-off rain showers.

Then, as the storm lingers in the Tennessee Valley Friday night, a band of showers should sweep into our area.

Hurricane season 14 hours ago

Helene strengthens to a Category 4 hurricane as it nears Florida's Gulf Coast

Hurricane season 19 hours ago

As Helene bears down, insurance woes add to Florida homeowners' anxiety

Through the weekend, most Delaware Valley neighborhoods should get around an inch of rain or less. However, another inch is possible as more rain moves in early next week.

We have been experiencing some drought conditions across our area, so some rain would be beneficial.

Locals sending support for impact from hurricane

Atlantic City electric company Delmarva Power is sending crews and support personnel to Georgia to assist Georgia Power with expected impacts from the hurricane as it moves through the southern region.

Exelon utilities Pepco and BGE are also sending crews to Georgia Power, according to Delmarva.

Pennsylvania Task Force 1, which is sponsored by the Philadelphia Fire Department, began mobilizing Thursday morning to deploy 45 members to Greensboro, North Carolina to support the response to Hurricane Helene.

Be sure to keep checking back with the NBC10 First Alert Weather Team on NBC10 News, our website and in our app (download the latest version now) for the latest forecasts as small track changes to a big storm like Helene can quickly impact wet weather for us.