WATCH: Hurricane Hunters fly over eye of storm to help forecasters. On Saba, the hurricane also defoliated trees and injured a few people. [102] Irma killed four people on the French side of the island and injured 50 others, one of whom was in critical condition. All 7,000 troops were ordered to be on duty by September 8. [28] By September 6, the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency had deployed response teams in Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands. [104] Estimates from CEDIM indicate a minimum of $950 million worth of economic losses. Irma soaked the northern coasts of the Dominican Republic and Haiti and brought hurricane-force winds to the Turks & Caicos Islands on Thursday. [14] Irma continued to intensify while approaching the northern Leeward Islands. The shelters collectively housed about 191,764 people,[47] with more than 40% of them staying in a shelter in South Florida. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) began monitoring a tropical wave over western Africa on August 26. Officials resorted to using inflatable rafts to access affected areas. During this time, Irma began moving west-southwestward under the influence of a strong high pressure area to the north. [114] Streets in the capital of Gustavia were turned into rushing rivers, which carried away vehicles and pieces of furniture. [50] However, on the opposite coast, extensive erosion and storm surge flooding occurred in the First Coast, especially in Duval and St. Johns counties. Hurricane Irma was an extremely powerful Cape Verde hurricane that caused widespread destruction across its path in September 2017. This subsequently ended the 60-hour contiguous period of Irma maintaining Category 5 intensity, the second longest any Atlantic storm had maintained winds above 156 mph (251 km/h) – only the 1932 Cuba hurricane had lasted for a longer consecutive time period at that intensity, at 78 hours. [85], Preliminary assessments from the French government indicate that Hurricane Irma caused a combined €1.2 billion (US$1.43 billion) in insured losses across the French territories of Saint-Martin and Saint Barts. Hurricane Irma was an extremely powerful Cape Verde hurricane that caused extensive damage in the Caribbean and Florida. Irma acquired annular characteristics around this time, with the storm exhibiting a large, symmetric CDO and an impressive satellite appearance. [224][225], By September 12, the Department for International Development had delivered more than 40 tonnes of aid into the region, including into Turks and Caicos, and 1,000 UK military troops were deployed in the region as part of relief efforts. Its theme parks, water parks, and Disney Springs were all closed by 9:00 p.m. on September 9 and remained closed until September 12. [2], Once Irma had moved inland, it began to accelerate to the north-northwest, while rapid weakening began to occur due to the increasing wind shear, land interaction, and dry air, with the storm falling below Category 3 intensity hours after landfall. [135], The most severely affected areas included the offshore islands of Culebra and Vieques, as well as the northeastern, northern, and mountainous portions of the main island. Emergency crews were put on standby at public shelters and hospitals by September 5 to assist with any evacuations. Damage to Sint Maarten's harbour and to Princess Juliana International Airport left the Dutch part of Saint Martin unreachable, although the smaller Grand Case-Espérance Airport on the French side could be reopened by September 7 for supply aid by helicopter and airplane. [86], While Irma was making landfall in Florida, the ocean was drawn away from some western shorelines of the Bahamas due to strong easterly winds. As it continued approaching the Leeward Islands, Irma underwent a second and more robust period of rapid intensification, becoming a Category 5 hurricane by 12:00 UTC on the following day, with winds of 175 mph (280 km/h). For other storms of the same name, see, Hurricane Irma near peak intensity approaching the, Saint Martin and French Overseas Department, A major hurricane is a storm that ranks as Category 3 or higher on the. [265], Following Irma's passage, a 15 ft (4.6 m) hand-carved wooden canoe was discovered on the banks of the Indian River and could be several hundred years old. Although the NHC operationally considered Irma to be a Category 3 hurricane at that time,[9] post-analysis indicated that the storm was still at Category 2 status. Irma was Irene's replacement for 2017 after Irene got retired in 2011. [203] By of September 12, almost 100,000 had lost power in Upstate South Carolina. [126], Most homes and businesses were destroyed on the island of Jost Van Dyke, the smallest of the B.V.I. Once the eyewall replacement cycle was complete, Irma began to re-intensify, and it re-attained Category 5 intensity at 18:00 UTC that day east of Cuba as deep convection became more pronounced and organized. [39] By September 7, the government had evacuated 1,609 people by air from the southern islands, including 365 from Bimini. [2] As the hurricane moved away from the Virgin Islands late on September 6, observations from reconnaissance flights indicated that the cyclone weakened and had concentric eyewalls, while a Doppler radar in San Juan, Puerto Rico, also noted a double eyewall. 1 An unofficial wind gust was clocked at 199 miles per hour. The tropical wave moved off the coast of the continent late on August 27. All of Monroe County, where the Florida Keys are located, was placed under a mandatory evacuation. After Hurricane Irma, much of it is gone", "Hurricane Irma: 'We Will Have Victims to Lament, "Hurricane Irma destroys 90 percent of structures, vehicles on Barbuda", "Antigua spared the worst during passage of Hurricane Irma", "Trail of devastation as Hurricane Irma destroys whole Caribbean island of Saint Martin", "Hurricane Irma damage update: Shocking extent of St Martin damage", "Irma sème 'l'apocalypse' à Saint-Barth et Saint-Martin, au moins 4 morts", "Dode en plunderingen op Nederlandse deel Sint Maarten na orkaan Irma", "World famous Princess Juliana St Maarten Airport where planes fly just above tourists' heads devastated by Hurricane Irma", "The Latest: States sending 7K National Guardsmen to Florida", "Dit is wat we nu weten over de gevolgen van orkaan Irma", "Subject: Tropical Cyclone Names: B1) How are tropical cyclones named? The island's fire station was inundated with up to 6.4 ft (2.0 m) of flood waters. [72] The Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees moved their September 11–13 series from Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg to Citi Field in Queens. [268] By 00:15 UTC on September 6, Irma reached peak intensity with 180 mph (285 km/h) winds and a minimum pressure of 914 mbar (914 hPa; 27.0 inHg). [149], Early on September 9, Irma made landfall on the Camagüey Archipelago off the northern coast of Cuba, with sustained winds of 165 mph (270 km/h). "[35] The Dutch territories of Saba and Sint Eustatius were also struck by the hurricane's winds, resulting in infrastructural damage, water shortages and telecommunication outages. [47] Officials advised residents to stock their hurricane kits. The storm reached 1-minute sustained winds of 180 mph (285 km/h) and its lowest recorded pressure was 914 mbar (hPa). However, in Miami-Dade County, about 1,000 homes received major damage and about 50% of crops were lost. ] estimates from CEDIM indicate a minimum of $ 20–65 million for history! 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