Tropical Storm Helene weakens over Florida

The center of weakened Tropical Storm Helene came ashore Friday

FORT WALTON BEACH, Florida (CNN) -- The National Hurricane Center today canceled warnings for Tropical Storm Helene west of Destin, Florida as forecasters predicted the storm would take a northerly track into Georgia later Friday.

The center reported Helene was moving north-northeast at about 13 mph. Its elongated center was inland near 30.9 north latitude, 86.1 west longitude, 25 miles east-northeast of Crestview, Florida.

HELENE INFORMATION 11 a.m. EDT Friday POSITION: 30.9 north latitude 86.1 west longitude 25 miles east-northeast of Crestview, Florida MOVEMENT: North-northeast at about 13 mph (21 km/h) WIND SPEED: near 40 mph (64 km/h) HURRICANE WATCH: Discontinued TROPICAL STORM WARNING: From Destin east to the mouth of the Aucilla River in Florida TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS: Extend 85 miles (136 km) mainly from the east of the center.   RESOURCES CNN - Storm Center     STORM WATCH E-MAIL Sign up for CNN.com's U.S. Storm Watch E-mail.     MESSAGE BOARD Nature's wrath

Earlier, the storm made landfall near Ft. Walton Beach, Florida, packing 45 mph winds and waves in the six-foot range. No damage was reported.

Tropical storm force winds extended up to 85 miles east of the storm center. Forecasters expect rainfall from 5 to 8 inches and storm surge flooding from 2 to 4 feet above normal tide levels.

Remaining tropical storm warnings for Destin east to the mouth of Aucilla River in Florida were expected to be cancelled later Friday.

The main concern was the storm's effect on rush-hour traffic. Bridges could be closed if winds increase, CNN Correspondent Brian Cabell reported.

"Most of the action is east of Pensacola near Panama City," said CNN meteorologist Dave Hennen. "Isolated tornadoes are possible as a result of high winds from the storm."

The storm was forecast to dump up to 3 inches of rain this weekend across parts of Alabama, Georgia and the Carolinas.

A hurricane watch issued by the National Hurricane Center on Thursday for much of the northwestern Florida coast was canceled early Friday when the storm's strength weakened.

Further inland, wind advisories were issued for parts of southern Alabama, and the Georgia cities of Columbus and Macon.

Helene is the second big storm to hit Florida in the past few days. Tropical Storm Gordon washed over north Florida on Sunday night, producing minimal damage.

CNN Correspondent Brian Cabell and CNN Meteorologist Dave Hennen contributed to this report.

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National Hurricane Center
Climate Prediction Center - Expert Assessments: Drought Assessment

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