Helene heads toward Virginia with weakened winds after deadly storm surge

The southeast continues to grapple with the destructive aftermath of Hurricane Helene, which caused ferocious winds and historic flooding that killed at least 39 people.

Helene, which weakened into a post-tropical cyclone Friday, reached landfall late Thursday near Perry, Florida, with 140-mph winds. The system was the first known Category 4 storm to hit Florida’s Big Bend region since records began in 1851.

The system will keep weakening as it meanders over western Kentucky on Saturday, possibly near Tennessee border, according to AccuWeather senior meteorologist Bob Smerbeck. General wind gusts of 20-25 mph are expected with some 30-35 mph gusts possible. By Sunday, it will track across the central Appalachians with weak winds and pockets of rain.

Helene news: Saturday live updates on storm damage, deaths

"It really loses its punch as we go into Sunday. I mean, there may be only 10 to 20 mph winds left behind over parts of the Ohio Valley," Smerbeck told USA TODAY Friday.

Helene is expected to move across Virginia and southern Pennsylvania with some moderate rain before heading out into the Atlantic Ocean by Tuesday.

Rain expected in central Florida, Tennessee amid cleaning efforts

Showers and thunderstorms are forecast to develop over central Florida and the across the state's peninsula Saturday while cities like Tampa Bay are still grappling from the storm surge. High humidity is also expected, Smerbeck added.

"It looks like the showers and thunderstorms coverage area will shrink a little bit for Sunday across Central Florida, but there still could be some isolated storms around even on Sunday to places like Tampa," Smerbeck said.

While hardly hit areas like central and eastern Georgia will see dry weather through the weekend, Smerbeck said widespread showers are expected in Tennessee into the Appalachians.

"It's not going to be walls of heavy rain. It'll be more hit and miss, but people trying to clean up and still have some downpours across the southern Appalachians," he added.

Helene unleashed havoc late Thursday causing several power outages, flattening homes and overturning boats across the storm-weary region. Across the Southeast, first responders underwent hundreds of water rescues amid the brutal rain and continued coastal flooding in western Florida.

Tropical Depression Helene tracker

Tropical Depression Helene spaghetti models

Illustrations include an array of forecast tools and models, and not all are created equal. The hurricane center uses only the top four or five highest performing models to help make its forecasts. 

Florida weather map

US weather watches and warnings

National weather radar

A video was added to this story.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Weakened Helene moves over Kentucky after deadly storm surge: Forecast