Nicole made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane early Thursday, continuing to bring strong winds, storm surge and heavy rain across the region, forecasters said.
Nicole — which made landfall on North Hutchinson Island south of Vero Beach — had maximum sustained winds of 75 mph before being downgraded to a tropical storm with winds of 70 mph and was moving west-northwest at 14 mph about 60 miles southeast of Orlando, according to the latest advisory from the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
WATCH LIVE: Hurricane Nicole Tracker
A tropical storm warning is in effect from Boca Raton to South Santee River, South Carolina, Lake Okeechobee and north of Bonita Beach to Indian Pass. A storm surge warning is in effect from Jupiter Inlet to Altamaha Sound, Georgia, north of the St. Johns River to Georgetown and from the Anclote River to the Ochlockonee River.
After landfall, Nicole’s center is then expected to move across central and northern Florida into southern Georgia and into the Carolinas. It’s expected to weaken as it moves across Florida and is likely to become a post-tropical cyclone by Friday afternoon.
Miami-Dade and Broward were out of the storm’s “cone of concern” but were experiencing flooding from heavy rain and wind gusts.
Nicole is the eighth hurricane of the 2022 season and a rare November hurricane for storm-weary Florida, where only two hurricanes have made landfall since recordkeeping began in 1853 — the 1935 Yankee Hurricane and Hurricane Kate in 1985.
Residents in several Florida counties — Flagler, Palm Beach, Martin and Volusia — were ordered to evacuate such barrier islands, low-lying areas and mobile homes. Volusia, home to Daytona Beach, imposed a curfew and warned that intercoastal bridges used by evacuees would close when winds reach 39 mph.
Disney World and Universal Orlando Resort announced they were closing early on Wednesday and likely would not reopen as scheduled on Thursday.
Palm Beach International Airport closed Wednesday morning, and Daytona Beach International Airport said it would cease operations. Orlando International Airport, the seventh busiest in the U.S., also closed. Further south, officials said Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and Miami International Airport were experiencing some flight delays and cancellations but both planned to remain open.
Almost two dozen school districts were closing schools for the storm and 15 shelters had opened along Florida’s east coast, the governor said.
Forty-five of Florida’s 67 counties were under a state of emergency declaration.
Florida Division of Emergency Management director Kevin Guthrie said Floridians should expect possible tornadoes, rip currents and flash flooding.
Early Wednesday, President Joe Biden declared an emergency in Florida and ordered federal assistance to supplement state, tribal and local response efforts to the approaching storm. The Federal Emergency Management Agency is still responding to those in need from Hurricane Ian.
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