LEXINGTON, Ky. (ABC 36 NEWS NOW) – We are in for a very busy day weather wise across central and eastern Kentucky. What was once category 4 Hurricane Helene will be tracking quickly across the region today brining widespread heavy rain and 50-60+ mph wind gusts. There is a Flood Watch out for all of the area along and south of I-64, as 4-6 inches of rain is in the forecast through the weekend. That does include the rain that fell last night and early this morning, but an additional 2-4″ is likely today as the heaviest of the rain moves in. Very strong wind gusts are likely as well, with 50-60 mph gusts on the way for many. A High Wind Warning is now out for most of the area due to the strong winds. Power outages and wind damage will be possible, and even likely in areas experiencing 60 mph wind gusts or stronger. The strongest of the wind gusts will be moving in during your mid-morning and last through the afternoon. The center of the Helene will likely be moving across southern Kentucky during the early afternoon. It is likely this will STILL be a tropical storm as it enters the southern Kentucky lakes region. That is very rare to see, especially after the system will have already gone over the southern Appalachian Mountains. Travel is going to be very difficult during the midday and afternoon with the strong wind gusts and heavy rain. As the center of the system exits to the west, we will likely see the heavy rain diminishing across the area. There could even be a little bit of clearing on the backside of this system as well, though it won’t last long. A strong breeze will continue through the evening hours, though the strongest of the winds will be over. 30-40 mph wind gusts will last through the evening across the region. Rain chances will continue through Saturday and even Sunday as the remnants of Helene stall out to our west. Heavy rain isn’t likely, but moderate rain showers chances will continue through the weekend. This system won’t finally exit until Monday and into Tuesday of next week. A cold front will likely pass on Tuesday night, leading to seasonably comfortable conditions and drier weather returning by mid-to-late next week. Stay with the ABC 36 Storm Team for more updates.  ABC 36 HOUR FORECAST FRIDAY: Heavy rain and strong winds. 50-60 mph wind gusts likely. FRIDAY NIGHT: Rain likely, though not as heavy. Wind gusts upwards of 30-40 mph. SATURDAY: Breezy with rain showers. Highs in the upper 60s. Wind gusts upwards of 20-30 mph. Categories: Featured, Local Weather Headlines, Storm Team Weather Blog, Weather, Weather Forecast Tags: ABC 36 Hour Forecast, ABC 36 Second Forecast, Flash Flooding, heavy rain, Helene, Kentucky weather, Meteorologist Dillon Gaudet, weather forecast, Weather Video, Weekend Forecast