Authorities said 5,000 houses flooded, while 8,000 families were declared disaster victims after their homes were severely damaged or destroyed.
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Speaking to CNN, Texas Republican Rep. Michael McCaul, who chairs the House Homeland Security Committee, called the amount of money allotted by Congress this week for both Hurricane Harvey and Irma relief efforts a “down payment”.
In recent days, the projected path of the storm bounced between Florida’s east and west coasts. The current forecast models are showing this storm having the potential of either going over the peninsula of Florida, hugging the west coast, or going over the eastern Gulf of Mexico.
“The first thing I ask everybody to do is pray for us”, Scott said on ABC News. “For someone like me I travel a lot”. After losing power late Sunday, he made it through the worst of the storm shaken but unhurt. However, they warned its maximum sustained winds were 70 miles per hour (110 kph), with higher gusts.
Before slamming into to the United States, Irma hit Cuba late Friday as a Category 5 hurricane.
Adding to concern about Irma, many residents were taken by surprise as the track of Irma shifted to the west this week, and may not have evacuated in time.
According to a 2015 report from the Boston-based firm Karen Clark and Co., Tampa Bay is the most vulnerable place in the nation to storm surge from a hurricane, and stands to lose $175 billion. Joining us to discuss this further is Bristel Minsker from the Red Cross.
– In Venice, the water plant was shut down after it was damaged by the storm. City officials in Tampa are conducting a damage assessment on homes across the city. Swells there will likely produce high surf and rip current conditions, the National Hurricane Center said.
First responders spent the night rescuing people from their homes in central Havana as the sea struck with historic force in the flood-prone area, even as the storm approached Florida to the north.
“Check with local officials before returning home to make sure you can safely do so”, said Gov. Rick Scott on Monday.
He said the wind will not be steady though, only intermittent gusts.
“Sometimes the message can be overhyped”, Mroczka said. At least 36 people were left dead in the storm’s wake across the Caribbean.
In Jacksonville, record-breaking flooding from Irma’s storm surge continues to affect the city.
Irma devastated much of Marco Island, off the southwest coast of Florida, leaving it with no electricity or clean water. “We wouldn’t have power for weeks, and we just got the power restored this morning”, said resident Bob Lutz, 62, who had ignored evacuation orders and holed up with a week’s worth of food and water. It was responsible for numerous 1,500 deaths associated with Hurricane Katrina in 2005, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. “And government officials, I know you’re working so hard, you’ll never work like this, and I appreciate also your bravery. It is going to be bad at high tide around 2:00 pm (1800 GMT)”. “The combination of a risky storm surge and the tide will cause normally dry areas near the coast to be flooded”.
Due to the threat of severe weather, Gwinnett County Public Schools will be closed on Monday, Sept. 11.
In Pinellas County, low-lying areas like Snell Isle and Shore Acres are particularly vulnerable, as are the beach communities along the Gulf Coast.
– Strong winds blowing from the northeast pushed water out of shallow parts of bays and harbors in cities like Tampa and Port Charlotte.
Risky winds pose another threat. Only Hurricane Allen, in 1980, was stronger, with peak winds of about 190 mph (305 kilometers per hour).
“The storm system may cause flooding, power outages and tornadoes”, according to a county press release.
The eye of the hurricane – which is the size of France – struck the USA on Sunday.
He said the crews will try to work quickly to determine if anyone appears trapped or in need of assistance in their homes.
“Florida will get through this”, he said.
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On Saturday morning, the state was already beginning to feel Irma’s effects. Because the roof was replaced after Andrew along with storm windows and a backup generator, she’s not moving.
