TAMPA, Fla. — Nicole is making its way across Florida as a tropical storm after making landfall as a Category 1 hurricane early Thursday just south of Vero Beach along the state's east coast.
As it makes its trek toward the Tampa Bay area, heavy rainfall, gusty winds and storm surge conditions are expected throughout the day. A tropical storm warning is still in effect for the Tampa Bay area.
10 Tampa Bay is keeping you ahead of the storm: Download our free mobile app for real-time storm information and breaking alerts, and download 10 Tampa Bay+ on your Fire TV or Roku devices for live coverage.
We will have live updates throughout the day Thursday, Nov. 10.
7:27 p.m. Manatee County launched a resident reporting feature of Crisis Track, the county's current damage assessment software – available now for residents and business owners.
The reporting tool allows residents to report damage that they see in the county. To access the tool, click here.
5:01 p.m. After a few hours of weather delay Thursday morning from Nicole, Solid Waste trucks resumed collections in the afternoon for the remaining residential route customers.
4:25 p.m. Harry P. Leu Gardens and the Leu House Museum is set to reopen to the public at 9 a.m. Friday, Nov. 11 with regular business hours.
4:24 p.m. Tampa International Airport remains open and operational – but stormy conditions impacting airline schedules caused 18 percent of flights to be canceled and 30 percent of flights to be delayed so far.
More delays are expected throughout the rest of the day and evening.
4:20 p.m. The city of St. Petersburg's 9th Annual Veterans Day Celebration at Williams Park has been rescheduled for Friday, Dec. 9 because of the anticipated cleanup following Nicole.
3:52 p.m. The Sunshine Skyway Bridge has reopened to traffic after earlier closing due to strong winds from Tropical Storm Nicole.
3:48 p.m. Pasco shelters and county information center are now closed following the storm.
3:39 p.m. Crews with Duke Energy respond to power outages in areas where weather conditions allow, more than 160,000 restored so far. 90 percent of customers in some areas, where the storm has cleared first, will be restored by midnight.
3:08 p.m. Pasco County offers an online tool to report storm damage following Nicole. County leaders say this is the fastest way to get help and schedule inspections with the county.
2:11 p.m. Hillsborough County closed its emergency storm shelter at Erwin Technical College as of noon Thursday.
2:08 p.m. The city of Tampa reports 16 downed trees, 14 downed power lines and 10 traffic signals out of service after Nicole blew through the area. There was an average of 3.7 inches of rain.
2 p.m. The City of Tampa said it's responding to 16 downed trees, 14 downed power lines and 10 out-of-service traffic signals.
1:25 p.m. Trash collection for the City of Tampa will resume on Friday. Thursday customers will have trash pickup on Friday, and Friday customers will have trash pickup on Saturday.
12:52 p.m. Tropical Storm Warnings for Highlands and Sarasota counties have been canceled as the storm continues to move away from the Tampa Bay area.
12:08 p.m. PTSA said it is resuming service on the Suncoast Beach Trolley. It provides service from Clearwater Beach down to 75th Avenue and Gulf Boulevard. All other PTSA routes are running as normal.
12 p.m. Tampa Mayor Jane Castor said the city hasn't been seriously impacted by Tropical Storm Nicole. And, while thousands are out of power in Tampa, TECO has been able to work non-stop to work on getting the lights back on for customers. Castor also said Friday would be "back to business" as usual following the storm.
In part, Castor said the reason the city is doing so well in light of the storm is because of the preparation the city did ahead of Nicole. "With these storms, I always say that the only predictable element is the unpredictability," she said. "And so there's not a lot that you can control when the storm hits you, so you have to control what you can prior to."
11:51 a.m.: Two people died Thursday morning after they came in contact with a live, downed power line in Central Florida likely left in the wake of Tropical Storm Nicole, authorities said.
10:20 a.m. Gov. Ron DeSantis announced at a press conference that he expanded the state of emergency to include all Florida counties out of "an abundance of caution."
While winds have been the main concern with Nicole, heavy rain, flooding and storm surge could also pose a threat, the governor said. He said that as of Thursday morning, about 333,000 households were without power across the state.
"We’re ready and we have resources to respond to whatever post-storm needs may arise," DeSantis added.
10 a.m. A carport fell on a truck at a Holiday, Florida, home as Nicole brought strong winds through the area.
9:27 a.m. The Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority suspended service of the Suncoast Beach Trolley which runs from Clearwater Beach down to 75th Avenue and Gulf Boulevard. All other PSTA routes remain open.
8:42 a.m. The St. Petersburg Police department says traffic lights on 34th Street N are out. Officers said they have set up cones on 30th Avenue N to direct traffic to only turn right onto 34th Street N. "Please slow down and drive cautiously."
7:12 a.m. The White House announced President Biden's approval of an emergency declaration for the Seminole Tribe of Florida. His order allows federal assistance to supplement the tribe’s response efforts due to the emergency conditions resulting from Tropical Storm Nicole.
6:49 a.m. The Sunshine Skyway Bridge is now closed to all traffic due to high winds now at 50 mph. Drivers should find alternate routes and use caution on all roadways.
5:30 a.m. Power outages are beginning to affect the Tampa Bay area. Across Florida, more than 127,000 people are without power as Tropical Storm Nicole continues its inland trek.
5 a.m. Nearly 40 flights are currently canceled at Tampa International Airport. TPA encourages passengers to check with their airlines for the latest updates before heading to the airport. You can check the latest flight status from TPA here.
4 a.m. Nicole weakens to a tropical storm as it moves inland across Florida.
3 a.m. Nicole makes landfall as a Category 1 hurricane just south of Vero Beach along Florida's east coast.
7:41 p.m. Wednesday: The City of Tampa says garbage, recycling and yard waste collection will be suspended on Thursday, Nov. 10. Hurricane Ian vegetative debris collection will also be suspended the same day but will resume on Friday, Nov. 11.
7:18 p.m Wednesday: Creative Pinellas announced they are canceling its Arts Annual THE PARTY event on Thursday, Nov. 10. The organization encourages people to a gallery at Creative Pinellas on Friday, Nov. 11 from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
6:54 p.m. Wednesday: The Hillsborough Transit Authority will suspend all bus, van and streetcar services on Thursday, Nov. 10 due to Hurricane Nicole. HART plans to resume operations on Friday, Nov. 11.
6:40 p.m. Wednesday: Hillsborough Community College says it will transition to a remote environment on Thursday, Nov. 10.
5:57 p.m. Wednesday: Nicole officially strengthens into a Category 1 hurricane as it makes landfall on Grand Bahama Island.
