The Gulf Coast is bracing for a major hurricane landfall late this week as Tropical Storm Helene is forecast to rapidly intensify into a Category 3 storm on a path for the Florida coast. Residents were already evacuating and filling sandbags Tuesday,

Hurricane Helene has formed in the waters between western Cuba and the Yucatan Peninsula and now has its sights on Florida’s Gulf coast, where forecasters are warning of major and widespread impacts.