The race to flee Hurricane Irma has become a marathon nightmare for many as more than a half-million people have been ordered to leave South Florida before the category 5 storm strikes.
With the storm barreling toward the tip of Florida for perhaps a catastrophic blow this weekend, live Google traffic maps on Thursday showed massive delays on crowded highways as people tried to flee.
Gas trucks were also brought in with police escorts in a bid to help get residents fueled up so they could evacuate.
Normally quick trips turned into daylong journeys for Floridians on crowded highways amid a constant search for gasoline and lodging. Airline seats out of Florida were in short supply as well.
Parts of the Georgia coast, Miami and the entirety of the Florida Keys are now under mandatory evacuation orders after the National Hurricane Center issued a hurricane watch for the areas.
With the storm barreling toward Florida for perhaps a catastrophic blow this weekend, live Google traffic maps on Thursday showed massive delays on crowded highways as people tried to flee
Florida Governor Rick Scott has ordered the emergency evacuation of Miami’s coastal zones as Hurricane Irma approaches the United States mainland. Pictured is traffic out of Florida creeping along northbound Interstate 75 after a vehicle accident in Lake Park, Georgia
Evacuations went into effect in the Florida Keys on Wednesday and Miami on Thursday. Georgia ordered the evacuation of the state’s coastal areas – including the city of Savannah – on Thursday.
Florida Governor Rick Scott issued a grave warning on Thursday as he urged residents to evacuate.
‘If you live in any evacuation zones and you’re still at home, leave!’ Scott said. ‘Do not try to ride out this storm… we can’t save you once the storm hits.’
He noted the size of the powerful Category 5 storm and told residents not to become complacent.
‘It is wider than our entire state and could cause major and life-threatening impacts from coast to coast. Regardless of which coast you live on, be prepared to evacuate,’ Scott said.
Georgia Governor Nathan Deal ordered evacuations for all areas east of Interstate 95, including the city of Savannah. He also authorized about 5,000 National Guard members to help with response and recovery.
The last time Georgia was struck by a hurricane of force Category 3 or higher happened in 1898.
Forecasters warn the storm could hit anywhere from Florida to North Carolina over the next few days.
As people along the Atlantic coast anxiously watched the behemoth, Irma battered the northern Caribbean, killing at least seven people and leaving thousands homeless after destroying buildings and uprooting trees.
At least 31,000 people have already fled the Florida Keys, which could begin seeing wind and rain from Irma as early as Friday night.
Mari and Neal Michaud loaded their two children and dog into their small sport-utility vehicle and left their home near Cocoa Beach about 10am, bound for an impromptu vacation in Washington, D.C.
This satellite image obtained from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) shows Category 1 Hurricane Katia (left, in the Gulf of Mexico); Category 5 Hurricane Irma (center, over the Dominican Republic) and Category 1 Hurricane Jose (right, in the Atlantic Ocean) at 9am ET on Thursday
A map shows the projection that Hurricane Irma is expected to take over the next few days
The map on the left shows the evacuation zone on the Georgia coast. The map on the right shows evacuation zones in Miami. Only Zone A and parts of Zone B are under evacuation currently
Above, evacuation maps for Palm Beach County (left) and Broward County (right)
Using a phone app and calls to search for fuel along the way, they finally arrived at a convenience store that had gasoline nearly five hours later. They said the 60-mile trip up Interstate 95 should have taken an hour.
‘There was no gas and it’s gridlock. People are stranded on the sides of the highway,’ Mari said. ‘It’s 92 degrees out and little kids are out on the grass on the side of the road. No one can help them.’
Noel Marsden said he, his girlfriend, her son and their dog left Pembroke Pines north of Miami with plans to ride out Irma in Savannah, only to find the city was also shutting down because of Irma. Marsden isn’t sure where they’ll all end up.
‘I’ve got a buddy in Atlanta and a buddy in Charlotte. We’ll wind up one of those two places because there are not hotels, I can tell you that,’ he said.
NASA has secured Kennedy Space Center and SpaceX launched an unmanned rocket for an experimental flight. Kennedy closed its doors to all nonessential staff and a crew of about 120 people will ride out the storm on site.
Most of the critical buildings at Kennedy are designed to withstand gusts of up to 135 mph. Irma’s wind could exceed that if it reaches Cape Canaveral.
With winds that peaked at 185 mph, Irma is the most powerful hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic.
Irma’s eventual path and Florida’s fate depends on when and how sharp the powerful hurricane takes a right turn, National Weather Service Director Louis Uccellini said.
‘It has become more likely that Irma will make landfall in southern Florida as a dangerous major hurricane,’ the Hurricane Center said in a forecast discussion Thursday afternoon.
Workers board up the Mango’s Restaurant and Night Club in Miami Beach, Florida as the city prepares for the approaching Hurricane Irma on Thursday
Edward Pastrana installs wood shutters at the Miami City Ballet in Miami Beach, Floruda on Thursday
A women does her shopping to prepare for the approaching Hurricane Irma on September 7, 2017 in Miami Beach, Florida
Shelves that once held bottled water are empty as the city prepares for the approaching Hurricane Irma on September 7, 2017 in Miami Beach, Florida
The National Hurricane Center predicted Irma would remain at category 4 or 5 for the next day or two as it passes just to the north of the Dominican Republic and Haiti on Thursday, nears the Turks & Caicos and parts of the Bahamas by Thursday night and skirts Cuba on Friday night into Saturday.
The last category 5 storm to hit Florida was Andrew in 1992. Its winds topped 165 mph, killing 65 people and inflicting $26 billion in damage. It was at the time the most expensive natural disaster in US history.
FEMA chief Brock Long said people in Florida and other states must heed evacuation orders as the Category Five hurricane surges towards the US after causing death and destruction in the Caribbean.
‘Bottom line is the majority of people along the coast have never experienced a major hurricane like this. It will be truly devastating,’ he told CNN.
‘The entire southeastern United States better wake up and pay attention.’
President Donald Trump urged people to ‘be careful, be safe’ during Hurricane Irma. In a tweet, Trump remarked that Irma ‘is raging but we have great teams of talented and brave people already in place and ready to help.’
Trump’s exclusive Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach – the unofficial Southern White House – sits in the path of the storm.
US Air Force Reserve weather officer Maj. Jeremy DeHart flew through the eye of Irma at 10,000 feet Wednesday and through Hurricane Harvey just before it hit Texas last month.
He said Irma’s intensity set it apart from other storms.
‘Spectacular is the word that keeps coming to mind. Pictures don’t do it justice. Satellite images can’t do it justice,’ DeHart said.