Helene is expected to make landfall on Florida's Big Bend this evening as a major category 4 hurricane, bringing the risk of catastrophic damage.

Hurricane Helene is rapidly "accelerating" toward Florida's Panhandle, according to a 4 p.m. ET update from the National Hurricane Center. Tropical storm conditions were recorded "across most of the West Coast of Florida," meteorologists said.

Helene is expected to make landfall in the Florida Big Bend region Thursday night before moving inland at a fast pace across the Southeast.