A super sized Category 5 Hurricane Irma is moving fast towards northeastern Caribbean island, threatening to hit Antigua, the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico by Wednesday. The National Hurricane Center calls this storm “potentially catastrophic.” The storm may even hit the US mainland after moving over the Caribbean.
On Tuesday morning, Irma was traveling west with maximum sustained winds of 180 mph, which is quite a bit more the 157 mph threshold for a Category 5 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. At the time, the hurricane was 225 miles east of Antigua and Barbuda, according to the hurricane center.
By late Tuesday or early Wednesday, Irma is expected near or over Antigua and Barbuda, St. Kitts and Nevis, and Anguilla, according to the storm’s forecast track.
The hurricane center advised those living in the affected areas to make preparations immediately to protect your life and property.
The hurricane center’s Michael Brennan said,”We could see storm surges of 7 to 11 feet — that’s certainly life-threatening — and very, very heavy flooding rainfall.” He also warned that winds in the far northeastern Caribbean islands would cause massive damage next to the eye wall.
Hurricane Irma Forecast, Path & Map
National Hurricane Center
The hurricane might hit Antigua, the Virgin Island and Puerto Rico by Wednesday. According to computer models, the hurricane will be traveling near the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Cuba on Friday into Saturday. The storm may turn north towards Florida on the weekend.
Many residents in Florida are bracing for the storm. Long lines have reportedly been seen outside some store of Tuesday, full of shoppers preparing for the potential storm.
Florida, Gov. Rick Scott has declared a state of emergency in preparation of the storm. Gov. Scott said that President Donald Trump had “offered the full resources of the federal government as Floridians prepare for Hurricane Irma.”
Scott said in a statement, “In Florida, we always prepare for the worst and hope for the best, and while the exact path of Irma is not absolutely known at this time, we cannot afford to not be prepared.
But by Wednesday, the hurricane may lay the smackdown on the northeast Caribbean. CNN meteorologist Chad Myers said on Tuesday that “Anguilla, all the way toward (Antigua and) Barbuda, all the way up even toward the British Virgin Islands (are) in grave danger of an eye wall hit at (at least) 150 mph — that devastates the island, no matter what island it is.”
Here are the Caribbean islands who are currently under hurricane warnings: Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saba, St. Eustatius, St. Martin/St. Maarten, and St. Barts.
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