Hurricane Irma
Hurricane Irma was a Category 5 hurricane in 2017, the 9th named storm, 4th hurricane, 2nd major hurricane, and a 1st Category 5 hurricane of the hyperactive 2017 Atlantic hurricane season. Irma is also the 4th consecutive hurricane of the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season—after Franklin, Gert, and Harvey. The storm threatened the Leeward Islands, Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. Irma was also forecast to threaten the East Coast of the United States, but later forecast to hit Southwest Florida.[1]
| Category 5 major hurricane (SSHWS/NWS) | |
.jpg) Hurricane Irma near peak intensity approaching the Leeward Islands on September 5 | |
| Formed | August 30, 2017 |
|---|---|
| Dissipated | September 14, 2017 |
| (Remnant low after September 12) | |
| Highest winds | 1-minute sustained: 180 mph (285 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | 914 mbar (hPa); 26.99 inHg |
| Fatalities | 52 direct, 82 indirect |
| Damage | $77.16 billion (2017 USD) (Fourth-costliest tropical cyclone on record; costliest in Cuban and the Leeward Islands history) |
| Areas affected | Cape Verde, Leeward Islands (especially Barbuda, Saint Barthélemy, Anguilla, Saint Martin and the Virgin Islands), Greater Antilles (Cuba and Puerto Rico), Turks and Caicos Islands, Jamaica, The Bahamas, Eastern United States (especially Florida) |
| Part of the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season | |
Irma was the first major hurricane to develop in the eastern Atlantic since Hurricane Julia in 2010. The storm developed on August 30, 2017 near the Cape Verde islands. On September 5, 2017, the storm became a Category 5 hurricane. It had maximum sustained winds of 180 miles per hour since Hurricane Wilma in twelve years earlier. As it hit landfall, Irma went down to a Category 2 hurricane. Irma was the easternmost Category 5 hurricane on record in the Atlantic Ocean.
Hurricane or tropical storm watches and warnings were issued from Haiti to Dominica.
Hurricane Irma inflicted $77 billion worth of damage especially in Florida after making landfall in Florida.
Due to significant amount of damage and loss of life from the storm especially in Florida, the name Irma was retired in April 2018 by the World Meteorological Organization, and it was replaced with Idalia for the 2023 Atlantic hurricane season.
Hurricane Irma Media
Sea surface temperatures in Hurricane Irma's path from September 3–6.
Combined satellite image of Hurricanes Andrew (inset, at left) and Irma (right), showing the size comparison of the storms
Infrared satellite loop of Irma approaching the northern Leeward Islands on September 5, around the time of its upgrade to a Category 5 hurricane
'Florida Governor Rick Scott on Evacuations' video from Voice of America
Residents in Doral installing hurricane shutters in advance of the storm
Eastbound Interstate 4 lanes on the afternoon of September 9 are filled with evacuating traffic from the Gulf Coast (note the emergency shoulder use by moving traffic), while westbound lanes are almost empty at 5 PM on a Saturday afternoon
Video by mayor of Fayetteville, North Carolina Nat Robertson
A house in Barbuda that was badly damaged by the hurricane
Aerial video of the damage on Saint Martin, September 7, 2017
U.S. Navy video of damage in the U.S. Virgin Islands
Overflight of Jacksonville after Hurricane Irma
References
- ↑ "Powerful Hurricane Irma Could be Next Weather Disaster". CNN. Retrieved September 5, 2017.