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Hurricane Irma: 'Life threatening storm surge expected in the Florida Keys' – latest updates Hurricane Irma: 'Life threatening storm surge expected in the Florida Keys' – latest updates
(35 minutes later)
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Whoa... Just recorded a 69 knot gust here at the office in Key West! That's 79 mph!!! Again, please, please shelter in place, inside! #Irma pic.twitter.com/p28xkjiQ2B
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AP has published a useful explainer of the phrase storm surge.
The storm surge is called dangerous and life-threatening, but what exactly is it?
It’s not a wall of water or a tsunami. Simply put, hurricane winds push water toward shore. It can happen quickly and far from a storm’s centre, inundating areas that don’t typically flood.
Storm surge doesn’t just come from the ocean. It can come from sounds, bays and lakes, sometimes well inland.
Large hurricanes tend to create greater storm surge over a broader area, and coastal features such as bays can act like funnels and back water up into rivers and canals, said Jamie Rhome, head of the US National Hurricane Center’s storm surge unit.
“This is going to sneak up on people,” Rhome said.
Updated
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Associated Press reports on animals affected by Hurricane Irma.
Mo the Sloth and Kramer the Emu are as innocent as they come, but they’re doing time in a county jail in Florida.
So are plenty of horses, pigs, goats, sheep, tropical birds, alligators, snakes, turtles and other species the sheriff’s office cares for at a farm for abandoned, abused, confiscated or donated animals.
Once the 426 humans who normally occupy cells at the Monroe County jail were evacuated by bus to lockups in Palm Beach County, there was an opportunity to move 250 animals indoors, rather than leave them exposed to Hurricane Irma’s storm surge, rains and wind.
After all, hurricane preparedness wasn’t just about protecting humans and buildings. All over Florida, from zoos to refuges to shelters, getting animals ready for the storm was a top priority as well.
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The National Hurricane Center says Irma’s projected path is continuing to shift to the west, just by a few crucial miles, which should keep its eye just off Florida’s west coast on a track to hit St Petersburg, not Miami or Tampa.The National Hurricane Center says Irma’s projected path is continuing to shift to the west, just by a few crucial miles, which should keep its eye just off Florida’s west coast on a track to hit St Petersburg, not Miami or Tampa.
The hurricane’s leading edge was already lashing the Florida Keys with hurricane force winds. If the centre of the storm keeps moving over warm Gulf of Mexico water, it may regain more strength before making landfall again.The hurricane’s leading edge was already lashing the Florida Keys with hurricane force winds. If the centre of the storm keeps moving over warm Gulf of Mexico water, it may regain more strength before making landfall again.
St Petersburg, like Tampa, has not taken a head-on blow from a major hurricane in nearly a century. Clearwater would be next, and then the storm would finally go inland northwest of Ocala.St Petersburg, like Tampa, has not taken a head-on blow from a major hurricane in nearly a century. Clearwater would be next, and then the storm would finally go inland northwest of Ocala.
The storm currently has top sustained winds of 120mph (193kmh) and is moving northward at about 6mph (10kph).The storm currently has top sustained winds of 120mph (193kmh) and is moving northward at about 6mph (10kph).
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I am in disbelief right now... This is Long Island, Bahamas and the ocean water is missing!!! That's as far as they see #HurricaneIrma wtf pic.twitter.com/AhPAonjO6sI am in disbelief right now... This is Long Island, Bahamas and the ocean water is missing!!! That's as far as they see #HurricaneIrma wtf pic.twitter.com/AhPAonjO6s
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.@kentuckyguard Airmen evacuate hundreds from Virgin Islands following Hurricane Irma https://t.co/kP6s3S18lX pic.twitter.com/GD8z98lY28.@kentuckyguard Airmen evacuate hundreds from Virgin Islands following Hurricane Irma https://t.co/kP6s3S18lX pic.twitter.com/GD8z98lY28
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Some very practical advice from a Florida sheriff.Some very practical advice from a Florida sheriff.
To clarify, DO NOT shoot weapons @ #Irma. You won't make it turn around & it will have very dangerous side effectshttps://t.co/CV4Y9OJknvTo clarify, DO NOT shoot weapons @ #Irma. You won't make it turn around & it will have very dangerous side effectshttps://t.co/CV4Y9OJknv
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Irma is expected to rip through Florida’s southern archipelago on Sunday morning as a Category 4 storm, the second-highest designation on the Saffir-Simpson scale. Wind gusts near hurricane force began to batter the Florida Keys late on Saturday, the National Hurricane Center said.Irma is expected to rip through Florida’s southern archipelago on Sunday morning as a Category 4 storm, the second-highest designation on the Saffir-Simpson scale. Wind gusts near hurricane force began to batter the Florida Keys late on Saturday, the National Hurricane Center said.
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Amid urgent warnings from state officials to evacuate before it was too late, downtown Miami was all but abandoned on Saturday. Sheets of rain swept through the deserted city of 400,000 people, forming large puddles in empty streets that are usually filled with tour buses and taxis.Amid urgent warnings from state officials to evacuate before it was too late, downtown Miami was all but abandoned on Saturday. Sheets of rain swept through the deserted city of 400,000 people, forming large puddles in empty streets that are usually filled with tour buses and taxis.
The wind sent a construction crane spinning on the roof of the Miami Worldcenter, a billion dollar project near the home of the Miami Heat basketball team and the city’s performing arts centre.The wind sent a construction crane spinning on the roof of the Miami Worldcenter, a billion dollar project near the home of the Miami Heat basketball team and the city’s performing arts centre.
On Florida’s west coast, resident Charley Ball said he expected a storm surge to completely engulf the island of Sanibel where he lives.On Florida’s west coast, resident Charley Ball said he expected a storm surge to completely engulf the island of Sanibel where he lives.
“Just left the island and said goodbye to everything I own,” said Ball, 62.“Just left the island and said goodbye to everything I own,” said Ball, 62.