Skyway, all three bridges between Pinellas and Hillsborough closed as Helene’s impacts worsen around Tampa Bay

The Sunshine Skyway Bridge is closed, as of just before 2 p.m. on Thursday, as outer bands from Hurricane Helene, now a Category 3 hurricane churning in the Gulf of Mexico on its way to landfall in the Big Bend area, bear down on the Tampa Bay area with tropical-storm-force winds.

The Florida Highway Patrol and Florida Department of Transportation close the bridge when wind speeds reach about 45 miles per hour.

The Howard Frankland Bridge, Courtney Campbell Causeway and Gandy Bridge are also closed due to unsafe conditions from wind and storm surge.

There is no timeline for when the bridge will reopen, as decisions about reopening depend on improved weather conditions and motorist safety. Officials recommend that those who must travel locate an alternative route on Florida 511.

Elsewhere in the Tampa Bay area, Bayshore Boulevard is closed in Tampa as storm surge is already causing elevated sea levels, and wind brings waves crashing onto the roadway.

Flooding has already been reported in coastal areas, such as Gulfport and the Gulf Beaches in Pinellas County, and in Ballast Point and the Bayshore area in Tampa.

Hurricane Helene is expected to make landfall later Thursday in the Big Bend area, with the worst of storm surge set to hit the Tampa Bay area later into the evening and throughout the night.