Hurricane Irma: Residents prepare for 'potentially catastrophic' storm
Channel: News hot 24h/7day
Date: 2017-09-06

Islands in the Caribbean have made last-minute preparations for Hurricane Irma, the most powerful Atlantic storm in a decade, with officials warning of its "potentially catastrophic" effects.
The category five hurricane, the highest possible level, has sustained wind speeds reaching 295km/h (185mph).
It is starting to hit the Leeward Islands and will move on towards Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic.
In the US, Florida's Key West area has ordered a mandatory evacuation.
Visitors will be required to leave on Wednesday morning, with residents due to follow in the evening, and the international airport will halt all flights.
"We're emphatically telling people you must evacuate. You cannot afford to stay on an island with a category five hurricane coming at you," said Martin Senterfitt, the emergency operations centre director in Monroe County in Florida.