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The Covington County Emergency Management Agency was closely monitoring Tropical Storm Helene, which could bring strong winds and heavy rainfall to the area on Thursday.

As of the latest EMA update at noon Tuesday, Tropical Storm Helene is expected to make landfall Thursday, east of the local area, in the general vicinity of Florida’s Big Bend region.

As the storm travels through the gulf, it is expected to intensify into a major hurricane before approaching the northeastern Gulf Coast Thursday evening.

“The system is currently a tropical storm, but the National Hurricane Center and National Weather Service is expecting it to become a hurricane Wednesday afternoon,” said Covington County EMA Director Susan Harris. “They are expecting the storm to increase rapidly and the current track is not very far east of us.

“We really need to be prepared in Covington County and have a plan in place. Our immediate area has a 13 percent chance of tropical storm-force winds, which are anywhere from 39 to 73 miles per hour. We are in the area where we could see 4 or even 5 inches of rain. The system is expected to make landfall Thursday night into the morning hours Friday.

“With an area of high pressure currently in the gulf, we are unsure how that will affect us locally. The projected path shows the storm making landfall east of us, but the high pressure could affect that forecast. Right now, it is a waiting and watching game, but we do need to be prepared.”

The wind field associated with the storm is expected to be very large, impacting areas well outside of the storm’s direct path.

EMA officials said the system will move quickly and minor river flooding could be a concern going into the weekend.

If tropical storm level winds are experienced in the local area, those would likely begin early Thursday morning.