Airports in Orlando and Palm Beach announced closures Wednesday ahead of the anticipated landfall of Tropical Storm Nicole. The Miami and Fort Lauderdale airports remain open.

As of 10 a.m. Eastern time Wednesday, Nicole remained a tropical storm and was approaching Great Abaco Island in the Bahamas with maximum wind speeds of 70 mph. 

The storm is expected to intensify into a minor hurricane before making landfall near Palm Beach on Wednesday night. Forecast models show that Nicole will then head inland near Orlando, as it turns northward and loses intensity. 

Orlando International Airport will cease commercial operations at 4 p.m. and remain closed until conditions allow operations to resume. 

Palm Beach halted operations mid-morning on Wednesday and has not announced a reopening time. 

In Fort Lauderdale, officials tweeted Wednesday morning that the airport will remain open, though some delays and cancellations have occurred. Similarly, Miami International Airport advised flyers to check with their airline about potential cancellations and delays. 

According to FlightAware, 11% of Fort Lauderdale flights had been canceled as of 10:15 a.m. and just 3% of Miami flights had been canceled. 

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