Hurricane Irma: Puerto Rico braces for Powerful Storm

Hurricane Irma has caused considerable damage on French island territories in the Caribbean, and casualties are expected, France's president says.

The impact of Irma on St Martin and St Barts would be "hard and cruel", Emmanuel Macron added.

His overseas affairs minister later confirmed at least two people dead and another two seriously injured.

The storm damaged more than 90% of buildings on Barbuda, Antigua and Barbuda's prime minister said.

The category five hurricane, the highest possible level, is now passing over the northern Virgin Islands.

The most powerful storm in a decade, with wind speeds of 295km/h (185mph), is also forecast by the US National Hurricane Center to pass near or just north of Puerto Rico, then near or just north of the coast of the Dominican Republic on Thursday.

Hurricane Irma is making headlines as the most powerful Atlantic storm in a decade.

It took that title once its wind speeds matched those of Hurricane Felix (September 2007), but it has since strengthened to match Hurricane Wilma (October 2005).

The Saffir-Simpson scale is used to judge the power of a hurricane. Hurricane Irma has reached category five, the highest possible classification.

The huge storm is carrying wind speeds of 295km/h (185mph).

It is moving relatively slowly, at about 26km/h, towards the southern US coast from the Atlantic.

• Hurricane Irma: Visual guide

Where is it going to hit?

In the early Wednesday forecast, the US National Hurricane Centre said the storm's core was due to pass over the north end of the British Virgin Islands, touch the north of Puerto Rico on Wednesday evening, and pass near the Dominican Republic coastline on Thursday.

The NHC has two types of warnings for this scenario: a hurricane warning ("preparations to protect life and property should be rushed") and a hurricane watch ("hurricane conditions are possible").

On Wednesday afternoon, hurricane warnings were in effect for:

• Antigua, Barbuda, Anguilla, Montserrat, St Kitts and Nevis                                                 
• Saba, St Eustatius and Sint Maarten                                                            
• Saint Martin and Saint Barthelemy                                                              
• British Virgin Islands                                                                                    
• US Virgin Islands                                                                                       
• Puerto Rico, Vieques, and Culebra                                                              
• Domininan Republic from Cabo Engano to the northern border with                              
• Haiti                                                                                                                          
• Guadeloupe                                                                                             
• South-eastern Bahamas, and the Turks and Caicos Islands

While the less pressing, yet important, hurricane watch was targeted at:

• Haiti, from the northern border with the Dominican Republic to Le Mole St Nicholas                                                                                                 
• Turks and Caicos Islands                                                                                      
• South-eastern Bahamas                                                                                 
• Cuba from Matanzas province eastward to Guantanamo province                                  
• Central Bahamas

The NHC is constantly releasing new advisories. You can read the latest reports at the National Hurricane Centre.

Where is Hurricane Irma headed? Will it hit Florida and other parts of the US?

A caveat: forecasters projecting the direction of the storm warn that they could be wrong. The projected path should not be seen as a guarantee of safety for those in nearby regions.

Irma is currently veering north-west, and is likely to skirt the north of Haiti on Friday, move over or near Cuba on Saturday and Sunday, possibly striking islands off Florida. The projection for Monday is that it will reach mainland Florida but again, that forecast is far from certain, and we do not know how powerful the storm will be by then.

Nonetheless, Florida's governor is warning the population not to take risks, warning that it is stronger than Hurricane Andrew (August 1992), which killed 65 people.

"We can rebuild your home, but we cannot rebuild your life," he said.

Some of Florida's coastal and island regions are subject to mandatory evacuations. Residents in Miami are clearing out supermarket shelves, having been advised to stockpile three days' worth of food and water.

Is it getting stronger or weaker?

Hurricane Irma has been getting progressively stronger. On 4 September, it was a category three storm with winds of 195km/h. The next day, it was a category four, with speeds of 220km/h, and it's now at 295km/h.

The latest forecast predicts that the storm's power will fluctuate "but Irma is forecast to remain a powerful category four or five hurricane during the next couple of days".

It is not entirely clear how things will progress any further out than that, when the storm is projected to reach Cuba and Florida.

At the moment, official forecasters are calling Hurricane Irma "extremely dangerous" and "potentially catastrophic".

The threat to humans and property is unpredictable - we will not know the fallout until later.

Hurricane Wilma, in 2005, had similar wind speeds and killed 87 people, costing billions in damage. But wind speeds are not always a good indicator of the damage a storm could do.

In 2016, Hurricane Matthew, which was less powerful, killed almost 600 people - more than 500 in Haiti. The NHC's final report said that poorly constructed homes were "completely destroyed" by winds.

Extreme weather patterns are complex, and where the storm hits and how prepared the populace are may have a significant effect.

How much damage has it caused?

Hurricane IRMA Damage $$$$ Millions of Dollars Homes & Stores DESTROYED Few Deaths Reported!!

There is no news yet on any casualties.

The prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda said no lives were lost during the storm's passage, and damage was minimal. He attributed the "stunning results" to widespread preparation and co-operation.

"People heeded the warnings of my government to treat Hurricane Irma with absolute seriousness, and everyone did."

Not everywhere has been so lucky. In the French overseas territory of Saint Martin, French Interior Minister Gérard Collomb said the four "most solid" buildings on the island had been destroyed.

The Hurricane has destroyed buildings and caused major flooding on several French island territories in the Caribbean.


The French government earlier said it was worried about thousands of people who had refused to seek shelter.

What should I do to prepare?

Local governments in the path of the storm are issuing their own instructions, which should be followed.

Once the storm is a serious threat, the US NHC advises residents to:

• Be prepared to evacuate if you live in a storm surge risk area                     
• Secure homes by covering all windows with strong plywood, if you do not have storm shutters installed                                                                        
• Check the websites, news and radio frequently to make sure you have the latest advice                                                                                            
• Take refuge in a small interior room, closet or hallway on the lowest level, with as many walls between you and the storm as possible                         
• Keep away from windows, skylights, and glass doors                                   
• Be aware that if the eye of the storm passes over, there could be a short period of calm - but wind speed will rapidly increase on the other side               
• Ideally, those in the storm's path should have an emergency kit prepared in advance, with food, water, batteries, artificial light and other supplies..

Some islands in the region are almost at sea level and any significant storm surges would be potentially deadly, the BBC's Will Grant reports from Havana.

Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne announced the huge destruction on Barbuda, population 1,600, in a satellite phone call to local broadcaster ABS TV and radio.

However, Antigua, population 80,000, escaped major damage, with no loss of life, he said earlier.

US President Donald Trump has declared a state of emergency for Florida, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands, mobilising federal disaster relief efforts.

In Florida's Key West, visitors will be required to leave on Wednesday morning, with residents due to follow in the evening.

"Watching Hurricane closely," Mr Trump tweeted on Wednesday. "My team, which has done, and is doing, such a good job in Texas, is already in Florida. No rest for the weary!"

Parts of Texas and Louisiana are dealing with the damage done by Hurricane Harvey in late August. But it is not yet clear what impact Hurricane Irma might have on the US mainland.

The US House of Representatives on Wednesday approved roughly $8bn (£6.1bn) in initial emergency aid for states affected by Harvey. The measure will now go to the Senate.

• Texas recovery from Harvey 'could cost $180bn'                                             
• Uninsured and anxious, victims return home                                              
• How hard has Harvey hit the local economy?

A third storm further out in the Atlantic behind Irma swelled to category one hurricane strength on Wednesday, the US National Hurricane Center confirmed. Hurricane Jose has a maximum sustained wind speed of 75km/h.

Seeing multiple storms developing in the same area of the Atlantic in close succession is not uncommon.

Rarer though is the strength of the hurricanes, with Harvey making landfall in the US as a category four.

There have never been two category four storms making landfall on the US mainland during the same season, since records began.

Please pray to Puerto Rico!!!

News by:BBC News
Source: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-41172726