A day after Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency for 41 counties, he added 20 more on Tuesday, warning nearly the entire state to prepare for Tropical Storm Helene. The National Hurricane Center upgraded Potential Tropical Cyclone Nine to tropical storm status at 11 a.

Hurricane and storm-surge watches were issued Tuesday for much of Florida’s Gulf Coast, as a developing weather system is expected to rapidly intensify into "a potentially very dangerous storm," likely making landfall as Hurricane Helene later this week.

Florida expands its state of emergency to 61 counties in preparation for an incoming storm that could become a hurricane.

Declaring a state of emergency allows state and local governments much more freedom to coordinate their emergency agencies.

Ron DeSantis held a press conference at the State Emergency Operations Center in Tallahassee Tuesday morning at 9:30.This comes after the governor declared a state of emergency for 41 of Florida's 67 counties Monday due to a storm system tSign up for our Newslettershat is expected to grow into a powerful hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico.

Gov. Ron DeSantis has declared a state of emergency for more than half of the state. A system moving toward the Gulf of Mexico is expected to become Hurricane Helene.

ORLANDO, Fla. – With a potential hurricane bearing down on Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday declared a state of emergency for 41 counties, including Marion and Sumter in Central Florida.

Severe Weather Center 9 and government officials are monitoring Potential Tropical Cyclone Nine and its current path in the Caribbean.