The remnants of Tropical Depression # 7 regenerated over the Bay of Campeche (Southern Gulf) on Friday, August 17th. The warm southern gulf waters served as fuel for the storm...and atmospheric conditions were right for it to restrengthen.
Helene is very close to land, so that should help limit its development. However, it's no doubt that this storm will be a heavy rain maker...soaking parts of Mexico as it is forecast to make a landfall across the NE Mexican Coast on Saturday, August 18th.
There is a small chance that the center of the storm could actually ride north....parallel to the Mexican coast...as an Upper level trough of low pressure over the Eastern United States could help pull it northward. If this occurs, South Texas could get a nice dose of tropical moisture from Helene. That would be good news for South Texas since parts of it are suffering from either severe or extreme drought.
Meteorologist Deitra Tate
