However, much of Florida, including the Tampa Bay region, continued to be under a storm surge warning early Friday morning. That means officials continued to project potentially life-threatening flooding. The worst of the storm is now headed for Georgia.

In Clearwater, one of the hardest-hit regions, water levels surged to a record 8.6 feet, eclipsing the previous high of 6.8 feet. Similarly, in East Bay, levels peaked at 7.3 feet, surpassing the old record of 6.7 feet.

Hurricane Helene made landfall late Thursday night as a Category 4 storm, bringing catastrophic storm surge and life-threatening winds to Florida's Big Bend region. In the Tampa Bay region, water rescues continued through the night in coastal areas.