The National Hurricane Center’s 5 a.m. update has Hurricane Irma shifted further left than anticipated with the eye moving right along Florida’s west coast.
Late Friday night Irma made landfall in Cuba as a category five and will likely be a devastating five or four upon hitting Florida.
At 5 a.m. the center of Irma was about 250 miles south-southeast of Miami and moving west-northwest around 10 to 15 mph.
#Irma, now a Cat 5, continues to churn north of Cuba in the Straits of Florida, This morning may be your last chance to Evacuate!!! #FLKeys pic.twitter.com/1s6wBhsk4f
— NWS Key West (@NWSKeyWest) September 9, 2017
Just about the whole state of Florida is under a hurricane watch or warning. Forecasters predict the storm will hit Florida as a category four Sunday morning. However, Fox 13 meteorologists believe Irma will be a category two or three by the time it hits the Bay Area.
The shift west, should Irma stay that course, has the majority of the state on the storm’s strong east side. Governor Rick Scott urges Florida residents to leave now. According to CNN, about 5.6 million people have been ordered to evacuate from the state.
“If you have been ordered to evacuate, leave now. Not tonight, not in an hour, now,” Scott said Friday night to CNN.
Hurricane #Irma continues to move west/northwest off the coast of Cuba. This storm continues to be extremely dangerous!!! #FLkeys pic.twitter.com/vfF1B1oggE
— NWS Key West (@NWSKeyWest) September 9, 2017
If you are in the Keys, I am urging you to leave right now. Do not risk your life or the lives of your loved ones- get out now.
— Rick Scott (@FLGovScott) September 9, 2017
