Hurricane Irma Strengthens To Category 5, Threatens Caribbean And US
UPDATE: Irma strengthened to a Category 5 earlier this morning. Sustained winds are now at approximately 175 mph. This storm is going to do some serious damage.
Hurricane Irma has been building up strength in the Atlantic Ocean for about a week. It now appears likely to cause some heartache for residents and tourists in the Caribbean later this week.
As of 10pm EDT last night, Hurricane Irma is already a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of approximately 140 mph. The current storm track shows Irma on a path that appears most likely to affect Puerto Rico, Haiti, Jamaica, Cuba and the Bahamas.
There are models that show the storm continuing to strengthen. Models also show it heading West past Florida and North up the East Coast. It seems most models have it hitting Florida and traveling North from there, but I’m not a meteorologist. Your best bet is to stay tuned to weather forecasts for more information.
To my knowledge, there are no weather waivers in place for travel to/from the Caribbean or Florida from any of the airlines.
The Final Two Pennies
Aid organizations are still dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, which devastated large parts of Texas. It’s worrisome that humanitarian aid could be stretched thin by another hurricane. While I’ve been hoping Irma would fizzle out, that doesn’t look likely. Stay tuned to weather forecasts for more up-to-date information.
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I think that AA has waivers in place for the northern Caribbean Islands as of now.
Thanks, Trevor. I plan to do a weather waiver post shortly.
You might also contact some of the other airlines and hotel operators. Non of them want to be behind the curve on this storm. I talked with friends(I am from Jacksonville, FL) and others in Savannah. No one is waiting to be told to prepare. My sister in Savannah said her Kroger ran out of bottled water, flashlights around 6pm Tuesday for a storm that might not get there until next Monday. Some hotels in the Atlanta area are beginning to see inquiries from Floridians. Having been through many hurricanes prior to moving here and trading hurricanes for Maryland snow storms, I do not recall anything like this potential train wreck. The population in Florida as well as coastal development has skyrocketed since Andrew.