A hurricane watch and warnings of storm surges up to 15 feet high were issued Tuesday for almost all of Florida's western coastline as Tropical Storm Helene formed over the Caribbean Sea and heads toward the Gulf Coast.

Helene is expected to rapidly intensify into a major and massive hurricane with 115-mph winds by the time it makes landfall Thursday.

Potential Tropical Cyclone 9 is swirling in the western Caribbean and could quickly become a major hurricane before striking Florida.