Hurricane Nicole barreled towards Florida Thursday morning, as the 75-mile-per-hour storm pummeled the Bahamas on its way to the Sunshine State.
Evacuations were ordered across Florida, including former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate. The storm surg is expected to peak Thursday morning between 8 and 9 a.m.
The storm marks the third time in recorded history that a November hurricane has made landfall in Florida. The other two November hurricanes were the 1935 Yankee Hurricane and Hurricane Kate in 1985.
Nicole will likely make landfall between midnight and 3 a.m. on Thursday morning in St. Lucie County. The storm will then head towards the Orlando metropolitan area before moving north.
FLORIDA ELECTION DAY WEATHER: NICOLE BEARS DOWN AS VOTERS HEAD TO POLLS
The National Hurricane Center recorded Nicole's center at around 75 miles east-northeast of West Palm Beach, with maximum sustained winds of 75 miles per hour. It had hit Grand Bahama earlier – the first hurricane to hit the Bahamas since Category 5 Hurricane Dorian ravaged the islands in 2019.
The storm prompted Disney World and Universal Orlando Resort to close early on Wednesday. The amusement parks will likely stay closed through Thursday.
NASA MOVES ARTEMIS 1 LAUNCH DATE DUE TO APPROACHING TROPICAL STORM NICOLE
Major coastal flooding is expected from the Florida Space Coast to up to South Carolina. Tornadoes also remain a possibility from across east-central to northeast Florida Thursday morning.
On Wednesday, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said winds were the biggest concern and significant power outages could occur. The governor emphasized that 16,000 linemen were on standby to restore power, as well as 600 guardsmen and seven search and rescue teams.
"It will affect huge parts of the state of Florida all day," DeSantis said at a presser in Tallahassee.
Forty-five of Florida’s 67 counties were under a state of emergency declaration.
Early Wednesday, President 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.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
