Puerto Rico is next in line to feel the fury of Hurricane Irma. The powerful Category 5 storm is passing about 70 miles north of Puerto Rico with sustained winds of 185 miles-per-hour. Irma has already left a trail of widespread destruction and at least several deaths in the Caribbean. The prime minister of the Barbuda said the island is mostly rubble. The latest forecast has the hurricane moving through the Bahamas Friday into Saturday morning. Then Irma is expected to head north toward Florida by late Saturday afternoon, approaching just south of Miami as a Category 4 hurricane with winds of 145 mph.
Evacuations are underway in parts of Florida in anticipation of Hurricane Irma. Volunteer evacuation orders are in place for Collier County and the Miami area. Mercy Hospital in Miami moved more than 200 patients to other facilities in east Florida. Mandatory evacuations of tourists and residents took place today in the Florida Keys. Governor Rick Scott estimated about 25-thousand people have already evacuated the Keys, where he said the Category 5 hurricane is on track to hit Sunday.
Irma is getting some company, as two more hurricanes formed in the Atlantic today. The National Hurricane Center says tropical storms Jose and Katia have been upgraded to Category 1 hurricanes with maximum sustained winds of 75-miles-per-hour. Katia formed in the Gulf off the coast of Mexico while Jose is churning considerably east of Hurricane Irma.
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