Florida Gov. Rick Scott says Hurricane Irma is already shaping up to be a stronger storm than Hurricane Andrew, the most destructive tropical storm to ever hit the state.
Scott appeared on Good Morning America on Wednesday to issue a stern warning to his citizens – prepare for the worst and evacuate if you have to.
‘Let’s all remember, we can rebuild your home, but we can’t rebuild your life,’ Scott said.
Hurricane Irma set a record on Tuesday when it clocked sustained winds of 185 miles per hour – making it the strongest hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic Ocean.
Scott said that Floridians should be prepared for a hurricane like they haven’t seen before.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott says Hurricane Irma is already shaping up to be a stronger storm than Hurricane Andrew, the most destructive tropical storm to ever hit the state.
Hurricane Irma strengthened into a powerful Category 5 storm on Tuesday. Above, a satellite view of the storm on Tuesday
Storm coming: The most powerful Atlantic Ocean hurricane in recorded history made its first landfall in the islands of the northeast Caribbean early Wednesday, churning along a path pointing to Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Cuba before possibly heading for Florida over the weekend into early next week
Eduardo Soriano of Miami, waits in a line since dawn to purchase plywood sheets at a Home Depot store in North Miami, Florida on Wednesday
Carla Perroni Aguilera of Miami Beach, Florida, holds a cart as her husband Ronald Aguilera and her father Joe Perroni load sheets of plywood at The Home Depot store in North Miami, Florida on Wednesday
An employee restocks bottled water on bare shelves as customers look on at a Publix grocery store on Tuesday in Surfside, Florida
Floridians have been waiting in long lines to fill up on gas before the storm hits. Above, a line for gas at a Costco in North Miami, Florida on tuesday
Residents purchase water at BJ Wholesale in preparation for Hurricane Irma on Tuesday in Miami, Florida
Many stores are already reporting water shortages across the state, like this Costco in North Miami, Florida on Tuesday
‘We’ve got wind, we’ve got rain, and we’ve got storm surge. This is a massive storm. Water could cover your house. We want everybody to cover their house. This is bigger than Andrew/ This is bigger than Andrew. ‘ Scott said, referencing the 1992 storm that caused $26.5billion in damage – the most destructive in Florida’s history.
‘And it sure looks like it’s going to bare right down the middle of the state of Florida,’ Scott added.
Irma struck its first targets Tuesday night passing almost directly over the island of Barbuda in the eastern Caribbean. The storm is almost certain to hit the United States by early next week, though it’s still unclear which direction it will turn north of Cuba.
Scott said it was important that every Floridian prepare for the storm, since its course is still uncertain.
‘I want every Floridian to be aggressive. We don’t know exactly where this is going to hit. It’s as likely to hit Fort Myers and nNaples as it is to Miami,’ he said.
Floridians seem to be taking hurricane prep seriously. Stores throughout the state, which has been under a state of emergency since Monday, have already started running out of bottled water and other necessities and gas stations are struggling to keep up with the never ending lines of cars.
Scott advised his citizens to stock up on what they need but not to go overboard, so that everyone can get the supplies they need to wait out the storm.
‘I’m asking everybody as you get prepared: three days of water per person, three days of food. Take enough, but only take what you need. Don’t take more, so we can make sure we take care of all our neighbors,’ he said.
Scott has activated 100 members of the Florida National Guard to be deployed across the state, and 7,000 National Guard members were to report for duty Friday when the storm could be approaching the area.
Officials in the Florida Keys geared up to get tourists and residents out of Irma’s path, and the mayor of Miami-Dade County said people should be prepared to evacuate Miami Beach and most coastal areas.
This was the scene at Port de Gustavia on the island of Saint Barthelemy overnight as the storm started to lash the coastline
Howling winds have started to lash the island of Antigua this morning with residents told to protect themselves from the hurricane
Social media pictures show how the hurricane ripped through coastal locations in Antigua overnight with cars submerged in water
Mayor Carlos Gimenez said the voluntary evacuations could begin as soon as Wednesday evening. He activated the emergency operation center and urged residents to have three days’ worth of food and water.
The Hurricane Center in Miami said hurricane-force winds extended 50 miles (85 kilometers) from Irma’s center and tropical storm-force winds extended 175 miles (280 kilometers).
Hurricane Irma roared into the Caribbean with record-setting force early Wednesday, shaking people in their homes on the islands of Antigua and Barbuda on a path toward Puerto Rico and possibly Florida by the weekend.
Irma, which was the strongest Atlantic hurricane ever recorded north of the Caribbean and east of the Gulf of Mexico, passed almost directly over the island of Barbuda, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami.
Authorities in the small islands of the eastern Caribbean were still evaluating the situation at first light though there were widespread reports of flooding and downed trees. Antiguan police were waiting until the winds dropped before sending helicopters to check on damage reports of damage in Barbuda. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
‘We are glad so far for the good news that we have had so far,’ Donald McPhail, executive director of the Eastern Caribbean Civil Aviation Authority, said early Wednesday as he heard from employees around the region after hunkering down for the night at home in Antigua.
As the eye of Hurricane Irma passed over Barbuda around 1:47 a.m., phone lines went down under heavy rain and howling winds that sent debris flying as people huddled in their homes or government shelters.
In Barbuda, the storm ripped the roof off the island’s police station, forcing officers to seek refuge in the fire station and at the community center that served as an official shelter. The Category 5 storm also knocked out communication between islands. Midcie Francis of the National Office of Disaster Services confirmed there was damage to several homes, but said it was too early to assess the extent of damage.
The storm had maximum sustained winds of 185 mph (295 kph), according to the Hurricane Center. It said winds would likely fluctuate slightly, but the storm would remain at Category 4 or 5 strength for the next day or two. The most dangerous winds, usually nearest to the eye, were forecast to pass near the northern Virgin Islands and near or just north of Puerto Rico on Wednesday.
President Donald Trump declared emergencies in Florida, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and authorities in the Bahamas said they would evacuate six southern islands.
Warm water is fuel for hurricanes and Irma was moving over water that was 1.8 degrees (1 degree Celsius) warmer than normal. The 79 degree (26 Celsius) water that hurricanes need went about 250 feet (80 meters) deep, said Jeff Masters, meteorology director of the private forecasting service Weather Underground.
Four other storms have had winds as strong in the overall Atlantic region, but they were in the Caribbean Sea or the Gulf of Mexico, which usually have warmer waters. Hurricane Allen hit 190 mph in 1980, while 2005’s Wilma, 1988’s Gilbert and a 1935 great Florida Keys storm all had 185 mph winds.
The northern Leeward Islands were expected to see normal tide levels rise by as much as 11 feet (3.3 meters), while the Turks and Caicos Islands and southeastern Bahamas could see surge of 20 feet (6 meters) and higher waves later in the week, forecasters said.
Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Minnis said his government was evacuating six islands in the south because authorities would not be able to help anyone caught in the ‘potentially catastrophic’ wind, flooding and storm surge. People there would be flown to Nassau in what he called the largest storm evacuation in the country’s history.
‘The price you may pay for not evacuating is your life or serious physical harm,’ Minnis said.
The U.S. National Weather Service said Puerto Rico had not seen a hurricane of Irma’s magnitude since Hurricane San Felipe in 1928, which killed a total of 2,748 people in Guadeloupe, Puerto Rico and Florida.
‘The dangerousness of this event is like nothing we’ve ever seen,’ Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello said. ‘A lot of infrastructure won’t be able to withstand this kind of force.’
The eye of the storm was expected to rip westward on a path taking it a little north of Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Cuba.
The northern parts of the Dominican Republic and Haiti could see 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain, with as much as 20 inches (50 centimeters) in the southeast Bahamas and Turks and Caicos.
Also Wednesday morning, a new tropical storm formed in the Gulf of Mexico off Mexico’s coast. Tropical Storm Katia had maximum sustained winds of 40 mph (65 kph) with some strengthening forecast over the next two days. But the hurricane center said Katia was expected to stay offshore through Friday morning.
And another tropical storm farther east in the Atlantic was expected to become a hurricane by Wednesday night. Tropical Storm Jose’s maximum sustained winds had increased to near 60 mph (95 kph). The storm was centered about 1,255 miles (2,020 kilometers) east of the Lesser Antilles and was moving west near 13 mph (20 kph).