Hurricane Helene is snarling travel in Florida, while some stores and theme parks are closing

As Hurricane Helene moves over the eastern Gulf of Mexico early Thursday morning and nears landfall in Florida’s Big Bend coast, travel across Florida is facing major disruptions, with several airports closing ahead of the storm and airlines canceling hundreds of flights. 

Some store locations are closing or modifying their hours ahead of Hurricane Helene, including grocery store chains such as Publix, as well as theme parks such as Busch Gardens Tampa Bay and Walt Disney World, with the latter closing some parts of its park on Thursday.

Helene is strengthening over the Gulf’s warm waters, picking up to maximum sustained winds of 100 miles per hour. That made it a Category 2 hurricane as of Thursday morning, according to the hurricane center. At least two airports, including Tampa International Airport, halted operations early Thursday morning ahead of Helene’s approach, and advised travelers to monitor weather reports and check with their airlines about potential disruptions.

The Tampa International Airport “anticipates reopening Friday following a damage assessment that will begin as soon as it is safe to do so,” the airport said, noting it suspended all operations beginning at 2 a.m. ET on Thursday. 

As of 10 a.m. ET on Thursday, more than 200 flights out of Tampa International had been canceled, according to flight tracker FlightAware. Other airports with multiple flight cancellations include: 

• Southwest Florida International near Fort Myers
• Hartsfield-Jackson International near Atlanta
• Sarasota/Bradenton International near Sarasota, Florida
• St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport in Florida

The St. Pete-Clearwater airport said on its website that it was closed on Thursday, with plans to reopen on Friday morning. Sarasota/Bradenton airport said it was still open as of Thursday morning, but advised travelers to check with their airlines directly for flight status.

Southwest Florida International noted that Air Canada, American, Breeze, Frontier, JetBlue, Southwest, Spirit, Sun Country, United and WestJet had canceled their flights to the airport on Thursday. 

Fort Lauderdale airport

The Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport was open as of 10 a.m. on Thursday morning, with the airport saying in a social media post that it is monitoring Hurricane Helene as it moves closer to the state’s Panhandle. 

“While Broward County is not in the storm’s direct path, we could see some bad weather here,” the airport noted. The Fort Lauderdale airport “is open and operational, but if you’re traveling today, check with your airline.”

Is Publix open today?

Most of the more than 1,300 Publix locations remain open, although there are some locations that have modified their hours due to Hurricane Helene, the company said. About 65 locations have changed their hours as of Thursday morning, with most of those stores located near the Gulf Coast or in the Panhandle of Florida. 

“We are monitoring the storm closely and hours may be adjusted, and the status of individual stores is subject to change based on the storm’s path and projected impacts,” a Publix spokeswoman told CBS News. 

Customers can check this Publix website for their local store’s status. 

Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando

Some institutions such as museums and theme parks were also closed or changing their hours due to the approaching storm. 

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay said it was closed on Thursday due to the storm.

Walt Disney World, located in Orlando, said it is currently operating, but said some parts of the park will be canceled or unavailable on September 26. Those include Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon water park and the miniature golf courses at Walt Disney World Resort. 

Disney World said it was also canceling Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party on Thursday, September 26, and providing a refund to ticket holders. 

Universal Orlando said it was also closing some parts of its park, including Universal Volcano Bay, on September 26. It noted that Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure, Halloween Horror Nights and its hotels are operating normally.