The effects of now-Tropical Storm Helene are being felt across Johnson County Friday.
Helene made landfall late Thursday night on Florida’s Gulf Coast as a Category 4 hurricane, bringing storm surge, high winds and rain. Now the storm is affecting Central Indiana, and is expected to bring rain and gusty winds throughout the day Friday and into the weekend.
The National Weather Service in Indianapolis has warned the storm could cause damage to trees and buildings, power outages and create dangerous driving conditions. Localized flooding also is possible.
A High Wind Warning is in effect until 11 p.m. Friday evening as northeast winds of 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 60 mph are expected. The strongest winds are expected in the 4 to 8 p.m. time frame, the National Weather Service said.
Here is some of the latest information on the storm’s impacts on Johnson County.
6:26 p.m.: GCA’s football game postponed
Greenwood Christian Academy’s planned Friday night football game at North Central (Farmersburg) has been postponed.
GCA will now play North Central at 7 p.m. Saturday.
Other local postponements — all moved to Saturday — include:
- Franklin at Mooresville: 4 p.m.
- Greenwood at Perry Meridian: 1 p.m.
- Center Grove’s Homecoming game against visiting Lawrence Central: noon
- Edinburgh at Switzerland County: 6 p.m.
- Whiteland at Martinsville: 7 p.m.
4:58 p.m.: How to report power outages
As the strongest winds arrive in the area, here’s some information on how to report power outages.
For Johnson County REMC, outages can be reported four ways:
- Downloading the myJCREMC mobile app
- Visiting jcremc.com/outage-center
- Calling 317-736-6174
- Texting OUT to 1-855-939-3659 (must text from number connected to JCREMC account)
For Duke Energy, outages can be reported four ways:
- Texting OUT to 57801
- Visiting duke-energy.com/outages
- Calling 800-343-3525
- Downloading the Duke Energy app
Both JCREMC and Duke Energy encourage the public to avoid and not touch downed power lines. If a fallen power line or safety hazard is seen, contact local emergency agencies and the respective power company.
3:33 p.m.: Girls Golf Regional postponed
Saturday’s planned Girls Golf Regional at The Legends in Franklin has been postponed to Monday, the Franklin Community Schools Athletic Dept. announced.
More information can be found here.
3:30 p.m.: More Friday night football games postponed
Football games for Franklin and Greenwood have now been postponed because of Tropical Storm Helene’s impacts.
Franklin’s game at Mooresville has been moved to 4 p.m. Saturday, while Greenwood’s game at Perry Meridian has been moved to 1 p.m. Saturday.
They join a list of other local postponements:
- Center Grove’s Homecoming game against visiting Lawrence Central has been moved to noon Saturday. The Homecoming Parade has been outright cancelled, but the Homecoming Dance is still set for 7 p.m. Saturday.
- Edinburgh’s game at Switzerland County has been moved to 6 p.m. Saturday.
- Whiteland’s varsity game at Martinsville has been moved to 7 p.m. Saturday. Ninth-grade will pay at 5:30 p.m. Monday, followed by junior varsity; both at Whiteland.
More information can be found here.
3:12 p.m.: Museum’s Heritage Day moved inside
The Johnson County Museum of History’s Heritage Day is still scheduled for Saturday, museum officials said on Facebook.
But with the weather forecast, all demonstrators will be moved inside to the museum auditorium.
People are encouraged to monitor the museum’s Facebook page for updates.
3:08 p.m.: ‘Final Fridays’ canceled in Greenwood
Restore Old Town Greenwood has canceled their planned “Final Fridays” event for tonight because of the expected high winds.
While it has been canceled, organizers said in a Facebook post that they have ” something exciting up our sleeve” to make up for it.
The next Final Friday will take place on Oct. 25.
2:55 p.m.: Rock Around the Block rescheduled
Rock Around the Block, which was set to take place Saturday during the Franklin Fall Festival, is being rescheduled for Oct. 26 in conjunction with Halloween Town.
More details will be shared soon, the Moyra McCain Memorial Foundation said on Facebook.
2:50 p.m.: Weather postpones Friday night football games
Several local football games planned for Friday night have been postponed because of Tropical Storm Helene’s impacts on Johnson County:
- Center Grove’s Homecoming game against visiting Lawrence Central has been moved to noon Saturday. The Homecoming Parade has been outright cancelled, but the Homecoming Dance is still set for 7 p.m. Saturday.
- Edinburgh’s game at Switzerland County has been moved to 6 p.m. Saturday.
- Whiteland’s varsity game at Martinsville has been moved to 7 p.m. Saturday. Ninth-grade will pay at 5:30 p.m. Monday, followed by junior varsity; both at Whiteland.
2:45 p.m.: US 31 reopens in Greenwood
U.S. 31 southbound has reopened between Apryl Drive and Stop 18 Road in Greenwood.
The southbound lanes had been closed since around 12:21 p.m. due to downed power lines. The roadway was reported as reopened at 2:15 p.m. by the Greenwood Fire Department.
2:40 p.m.: Franklin Fall Festival canceled
A soggy, windy weather forecast has forced the Franklin Parks & Recreation Department to cancel the fall festival for Friday and Saturday.
Earlier in the day, the parks department also canceled Friday’s concert by Corey Cox and Hank Ruff at the DriveHubler.com Amphitheater at Youngs Creek Park.
Read more by clicking here.
