Hurricane Helene is sweeping across parts of the US(Image: Getty Images)

'Unsurvivable' hurricane causes travel chaos as residents told to write names on legs in case of death

An 'unsurvivable' hurricane sweeping across parts of the US has caused travel chaos with hundreds of flights delayed or cancelled as residents are told to write their names on their leg in case of their death

by · The Mirror

Hurricane Helene is sweeping across parts of the US creating travel chaos as residents are warned of 'unsurvivable' conditions.

Winds in excess of 140mph and flash flooding caused by Hurricane Helene are reaping havoc in parts of America, causing hundreds of flights to be delayed or cancelled.

Several airports are expecting delays and cancellations due to the hurricane, including 86 cancellations at Miami International Airport and 74 at Orlando International Airport. All operations at Tallahassee International Airport and Tampa International Airport were suspended on Thursday.

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Florida is experiencing flash flooding, landslides and major winds( Image: Getty Images)

The National Hurricane Centre as off September 27, at 5am EDT, is warning of power outages and "catastrophic and life-threatening flash and urban flooding, including numerous significant landslides". "Widespread significant river flooding is likely, some of which will be major to record breaking," it added.

Officials in the rural Taylor County, Florida, have been giving residents choosing to not evacuate morbid advice. In a Facebook post, the sheriff's office said: "Write your name, birthday, and important information on your arm or leg in a permanent marker so that you can be identified and family notified."

Michael Brennan, director of the hurricane centre, has also said in a video briefing that a surge caused by the hurricane — the wall of seawater pushed on land by hurricane-force winds — could rise as high as 6.1m in some spots.

"A really unsurvivable scenario is going to play out" in the coastal area, Mr Brennan said.

Travellers at one hotel in Florida were forced to huddle in a darkened lobby in the early hours of Friday, as winds whistled and howled outside. The lobby had no electricity, with only emergency lighting, torches and phones providing light for those inside.

Fermin Herrera, 20, his wife and their two-month-old daughter left their room on the top floor of the hotel, where they took shelter because they were concerned about trees falling on their Valdosta home.

The hurricane has stretched as far as Cuba( Image: AFP via Getty Images)

“We heard some rumbling,” said Fermin. “We didn’t see anything at first. After a while the intensity picked up. It looked like a gutter that was banging against our window. So we made a decision to leave.”

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said at a news conference on Thursday evening: "When Floridians wake up tomorrow morning, we’re going to be waking up to a state where very likely there’s been additional loss of life and certainly there’s going to be loss of property."

The Governor also told reporters that one person had died while driving on a motorway when a sign fell on to their car. The UK Government page for travel advice to the US, states: "The Atlantic hurricane season normally runs from June to November. The Pacific hurricane season normally runs from May to November.

"The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicts that there is a very high likelihood of an 'above-normal Atlantic hurricane season' in 2024. Travellers to the USA during the hurricane season should check the websites of local, State and Federal agencies (such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) for the latest conditions."

Winds are also now pushing towards Georgia, according to the Hurricane Centre, and residents are being advised to not leave their shelters and to remain in place through the passage of these life-threatening conditions.

Over 1.2 million homes and businesses have been without power in Florida, more than 190,000 in Georgia and more than 30,000 in the Carolinas, according to the tracking site poweroutage.us. Governors in Florida, Carolinas, Georgia, Alabama and Virginia have all declared emergencies.

North Carolina mountains have also experienced harsh weather with up to 14 inches of rain having fallen, with more possibly to come as forecasters warn of flooding that could be worse than anything seen in the past century.

Hurricane Helene is expected to continue across parts of the US on Friday, September 27.