With the worst of Hurricane Helene yet to impact the Tampa Bay region early Thursday, area school districts announced they would remain closed on Friday. Officials said the extra time off will allow them to clear campuses that have been used as evacuation shelters,and to assess and fix storm damage.

As Hurricane Helene passes through the Tampa Bay area, it could bring wind gusts of up to 75 miles per hour. So what happens to all the cranes being used to build high-rise towers across the region? Some can be dropped down to a lower height.

The Sunshine Skyway Bridge is closed due to high wind as Hurricane Helene impacts the Tampa Bay area. At 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, the Florida Highway Patrol said wind gusts had reached 60 miles per hour at the Skyway and closed the bridge to traffic. Authorities usually shut down the four-mile bridge when wind speeds hit 40 mph.