the florida keys, lake okeechobee and florida bay. a hurricane watch is in effect for north of jupiter inlet to sebastian inlet north of bonita beach to ana marie island. rainfall is forecast to be 8 to 12 inches with isolated areas receiving up to 20 inches of rain. based on what we now know the majority of florida will have major hurricane impacts with deadly storm surge and life-threatening winds. we can expect this along the entire east cost and the entire west coast. the florida keys should be prepared to start feeling the effects of this storm tomorrow morning. evacuations. i've offered school bus to aid in evacuations statewide. multiple counties have accepted these buses. any counties with the need to buses to evacuate residents request buses right now. we will quickly run out of good weather to evacuate. if you're told to evacuate, leave, get out quickly. the roads will fill up quickly so you need to go. i'm a dad and i'm a grandfather. i love my family. i can't imagine life without them. do not put yourself or your fam lice

part of florida. of course, we have reporters covering the state south all the way up to north, even into georgia. so we will have all of the angles covered for you. of course, if you want to help victims of hurricane irma or harvey, we have some of the web sites that we're going to list up on your screen now. we'll have the red cross, obviously, the salvation army. there are many ways you can donate. we also heard of ways you can help rescue pets too, so there's many facets that you can help. leland: yeah. and right now as we have heard, especially for folks florida south and those in key west, bill nelson telling us there's about 10,000 people still in the florida keys. it's too late, and now people down there need our thoughts and our prayers as irma bears down. as irma leaves cuba and heads north, could very easily intensify in the straits of florida with that warm gulf water. and even as we heard from the national hurricane center, they don't know yet, does irma make those two landfalls, or does

florida vegetables, there will be no florida vegetables, fresh vegetables in november. those green beans that many of you are eating on thanksgiving will not come from florida this year. we'll have to make up the gap from foreign producers because that crop is gone entirely. so i don't mean to leave any of them out. i'm just telling you the hit to agriculture was extraordinary, and unfortunately for agriculture -- and it's not mean-spirited why this happens, but there is not a lot of agriculture near major metropolitan centers, meaning there is not as much media coverage. i'm not here to beat up the media. in fact, i thank the media and i have done so because a lot of the work they did on the national networks and the local news is what got so many people motivated to get up and go out of harm's way. but there aren't a lot of camera crews stationed live from a citrus grove, so the power gets back on and the schools reopen and people forget that these farmers, most of whom, by the way, are not wealthy landowners from the movies. some of these are fourth generation grower

it's clear in florida, clear in southwest florida down along naples and fort myers. once you get about ocala, a lot of people fondling onto that thing and all heading north. the good news is there's a little bit more time before it makes landfall. yesterday, 60 miles an hour. last night and this morning, 40 miles per hour. now the storm has slowed to 12 miles an hour. it's about to make its turn to the north. stay with fox news channel for continuing updates. a quick commercial breaks, and "special report with bret baier "special report with bret baier. " bill assumed his mayo was the best choice. assume nothing. just like the leading brand, kraft real mayo is made with high quality ingredients at a price you can feel good about no wonder kraft is so good. you for four years. you named it brad. you loved brad. and then you totaled him. you two had been through everything together. two boyfriends, three jobs... you're like nothing can replace brad. then liberty mutual calls... and you break into your happy dance. if you sign up for better car replacement™, we'll pay

that's putting the florida keys directly in its crosshairs. wesg winds. governor of florida sayi. nearly 6 million people are thn orders. overnight irma did come ashore n hour. already more than a dozen people across the caribbean have been killed by this monster a storm. have reporters across th state of florida well as the caribbean, covering all the angles of the story, from the evacuations the damage already done. begin with mariani beach. what's the latest? >> reporter: you just saw hopefully a patrol car behind morning long in every corner trying to tell people to evacuate. we've also seen people that are barrier island, this coastal i evacuation order for its 100,000 residents. been here since 6:00e morning. weather took a turn fo worse in the last half hour. is avenue, a street that usually would be bustling with tourists, people walking their dogs, headed to the beach. a ghost do. we've seen those people who have decided to evacuate. tell us th home. said i have booze at homel time. that's what officers around her. that's they're urging residents to do. want to show ye bo

but again, the time over florida. andrew only spent four hours over florida. we expect irma to spend over 30. that's likely to cause some significant damage just that point alone. >> amazing how big it is. looks like the perfect storm. >>> category 4 track as it continues to florida. stay with us. super-cool notebooks, done. that's mom taking care of business. and with the "25 cent event", office depot officemax takes care of mom! now, all this just 25 cents each! ♪ taking care of business iso being cool comes naturally. on car insurance, hmm. i can't decide if this place is swag or bling. it's pretzels. word. ladies, you know when you switch, you get my bomb-diggity discounts automatically. ♪ no duh, right? [ chuckles ] sir, you forgot -- keep it. you're gonna need it when i make it precipitate. what, what? what? the unpredictability of a flaree may weigh on your mind. thinking about what to avoid, where to go, and how to work around your uc. that's how i thought it had to be. but then i talked to my doctor about humira, and learned humira can help get an

moving toward florida. still a category 4. i wouldn't be surprised if we see an update to that at 11:00. maximum winds 130 miles per hour as of the 8:00 a.m. advisory and moving toward the west-northwest around 12 miles per hour. let's take a look at the latest track again the keys in the eye of the storm as you head into the overnight into sunday morning, maybe regaining strength here. the waters are still very warm. even though the hurricane is weakening now it may regain some of that intensity and then this is the big change to the track that westward shift potential landfall somewhere from ft. myers, naples up towards tampa, that would be tomorrow afternoon, or sunday night even into monday, and then eventually weakening as it moves to the southeast as a tropical storm, picking up outer bands moving into south florida, torrential downpours, marathon winds gusting over 30 miles per hour and the keys feeling the effects in terms of the winds. this say large hurricane, we've talked about the massive size.

of miami, florida. winds 155 miles per hour. we'll see that turn today i think towards the north. let's take a look at the rain that's coming. heavy downpours through the florida keys and just towards miami. strong winds in marathon, up to 38 miles per hour. and in the bahamas, winds are churning at 36 miles per hour. if you're just joining us, we have a hurricane watch as far west as tallahassee, florida, as far west as jacksonville, florida. pretty much all of florida is under some sort of advisory right now. not vicing when you have a category 4 major hurricane getting close to florida. things have changed with the track since yesterday morning. hugging more of the west coast of florida, so a double landfall is possible along the florida keys perhaps early sunday morning and then again sunday afternoon near naples. sth a possibility in terms of exactly where it will pinpoint and we'll see the eye pass over. the national hurricane center mentioned one of the reasons that the forecast is difficult to m

out of florida. those were the questions folks were addressing a the airport. meanwhile, let's look at the path of the storm. bonnie schneider is back with us. >> ari, the storm center of irma, category five hurricane is interacting with the northern coast of cuba. but look at the size and the massiveness of this storm. in fact, you can even see some of those clouds getting closer to the border of florida. the storm is still a few hundred miles away. let's take a closer look at the eye and the eye wall. we watched eye wall replacement cycles. that allowed it to weaken and strengthen a bit. but right now, that eye is certainly interacting with the land across cuba. depending on how much interaction we see could really make a difference in terms of intensity, but fortunately not by much. i think we're still going to see a powerful hurricane as it works its way towards florida. the northerly turn is expected to happen tomorrow. right now it's about 300 miles to the southeast of miami florida. certainly

people in florida are potentially in hurricane irma's path. everyone in florida potentially. the entire state, the whole cone, from tallahassee all the way over, they can't predict exactly just as the governor was saying. but the cone of uncertainty covers the entire thing. and the center, the eye of the storm, i think i said 25 miles an hour, i meant 25 miles wide. that's varying a little bit from time to time but it's 23 to 27 miles wide, right? so when it's that wide, that covers just the eyewall if it comes right up over the peninsula, it is half as wide as this. the eye could move over large swaths of the state. it could move to the east which would be fantastic if you're here and not if you're up here. if it goes over the land, you know, it's the water, that warm water, especially really warm water. that warm water is jet fuel. the warmer the water the stronger the hurricane. if it loses that source of water by going over the land, even for a short period, it's moving 16 miles an hour right now. that what they think it'll stay. at 16 miles an hour, it will be over land

that can be a threat to florida. also talking evacuation saying the storm is here now, but to the north, there are still parts of florida under evacuation orders. far to the north areas that should be moving back. let's go back to governor scott. back in english again. >> thank you, governor. the florida national guard has been activated with 500 shelters. more than 700 more guardsmen are preparing to set up food and distribution sites as soon as the storm passes. we're working alongside fwc as soon as it's safe. we're working with our counterparts with national guard and other active duties. more than 10,000 national guard troops are on their way into the state of florida from 14 different states for deployment after the storm. help is coming by air, land and sea. we're grateful for the outpo outpouring of support and assistance from our brothers and sisters in the army, air force, navy, marines. coast guard and the entire guard nation. and we're ready to do all we can to help our fellow floridians. and we'll be her

it's now heading to florida. >> marci gonzalez in new smyrna beach florida for us with the very latest. >> reporter: traffic backed up for miles. >> going to jersey. >> reporter: with more than a million people in florida ordered to evacuate ahead of hurricane irma. >> this storm is wider than our entire state. it is expected to cause major and life-threatening impacts from coast to coast. >> reporter: in west miami lines for gas wrapping around city blocks even as far north as gainsville gas buddy reporting nearly 60 percent of gas stations are sold out. florida highway patrol escorting fuel tankers into evacuation zones in a rush to replenish supplies. >> most of the gas stations we've been to all day have no gas. >> reporter: airports crowded with evacuees rushing to catch the last flights out of south florida including tourists forced to leave their beach front hotels. >> everybody is evacuating. everybody has to go. >> reporter: are you planning to ride the storm out at the airport. >> if need be. this is where i'll be. >> reporter: after seeing the devastating impact of irma in t

this is the day florida has been anticipating. in south florida, we're seeing trees down, streets are flooded, not stopped raining since last night. and the state, you know, has been put on notice all week that this is not a storm to mess with. we've heard from the governor he said this is clearly a life-threatening situation. again, here in south florida, another major concern is a storm surge is one of the biggest concerns the water could rise significantly, pushed by the hurricane's wind. and also, something else to mention, the power, the power is out to hundreds of thousands of customers here in south florida and more than 75,000 people have flocked to shelters. right now, nearly 90% is under a hurricane warning, which is pretty astounding. nydia, gray? >> we talked more about those shelters, tens of thousands of people are hunkerring down. have been been able to visit and see how people are coping? >> reporter: not yet. a lot of the shelters haven't allowed media in at least where we're located in south florida but we do kno

southwest florida could see the most flooding. in just six inches of water, a car engine stalls, two feet and the car is floating, three to six feet, life threatening, in part because of everything floating in the current. at nine feet the water is above the first floor. despite the dangers, some residents staying put like richard chris her who made sure to secure all the boats at his marina club. >> i have a gut feeling i haven't had before. this one is really scary. >> reporter: some of the most vulnerable, the residents in trailer parks who cannot afford to leave. >> this is going to be, oh, wiped out. >> reporter: authorities detaining the homeless to protect them against the storm. throughout the day last-minute shopping for crucial supplies. police helping to manage out of control lines at this home depot. one man about to buy the last generator at this store giving it up to a woman for her sick father's medical needs. >> an angel from god is what he is. >> reporter: another urgent threat, the dike on lake okeechobee, reside

extreme concern tonight for the florida keys, miami, and all of south florida. nearly 2 million racing to safety. traffic jams. cars running out of fuel abandoned. and miami now bracing for a devastating storm surge. florida's governor rick scott is right here tonight. his warning. >>> the deadly path already. irma steamrolling turks and caicos and the bahamas. new images coming in from st. martin. and we are just now seeing the devastation in the british virgin islands.

rick scott, the governor of florida. 0ur correspondence has been monitoring the situation in florida as it braces for the hurricane's approach. hurricane irma is bearing down on the sunshine state. these scenes, a mere indication of what is to come. power outages are already widespread and roads flooded. for those who haven't been able to leave, time has run out. we are talking about wind gusts over 100 miles an hour, perhaps up to 130 miles an hour. this kind of wind can do tremendous amounts of damage to wood frame homes, trees, power lines and things. the other very deadly risk we have is storm surge flooding. most people who die in hurricanes do so from drowning in a storm surge. the people of cuba are already starting to count the cost of hurricane irma, which battered the island for hours before finally moving north. now a popular holiday destination, thousands of british tourists were stranded there. the airport is closed to all flights. 0perators including thomas cook have been criticised for not doing enough to help. it's a very unpredictable scenario. some of the airports a

back here-- many florida evacuees are taking refuge where ever the back here-- back here-- many florida evacuees are taking refuge where ever the can. some-- arriving in the dmv last night. we spoke with evacuees who arrived at reagan national airport last night. they say the journey was a lot longer than normal, but they they knew they have to get out. at least 25 flights are expected to at least 25 flights are expected to arrive from florida today. many airlines added additional flights today, becuase miami international airport will shut down as the storm gets close. this morning, we're getting a first glimpse - at some of irma's tiniest evacuees. "last chance animal shelter" in waldorf -- received 45 carriers worth of cats and kittens... from miami-dade animal control. more are expected looking for people to adopt - or foster - those kittens. the shelter is also expecting another 1-hundred dogs from texas this weekend. remember- we have breaking hurricane updates around the clock at wjla.com- and sign up for breaking news texts at wjla.com slash text. 5:xx i'm sam sweeney at the liv

meyers, florida. those people not necessarily having the resources that some people have, the younger folks have, people that are able drive themselves and their families out of the area. how are you handling those people? >> we are moving people around with public transportation and in our region, we have the lead tram. they have been running 24/7. obviously, they're not paying -- checking fares, we're in full emergency management operation. so we are providing transportation that way. there are numerous volunteers that are providing transportation and we are moving citizens in that way? mayor, if i can ask you quickly, is there anything in your initial assessment before this hurricane makes landfall that you and officials there in the county and the city feel that they need that they may not be getting? are you getting enough support right now? i know there was some concern last week because of hurricane harvey, some of the fema resources on the federal level have been diverted there. is it now maki

or north of florida are in the clear. officials say at the end of the day, this is still a hurricane. and once winds reach a sustained wind power 406 miles per hour in this barrier island community, all the bridges will close. what does that mean? that means no access to major hospitals. and that is very important. we spoke to the police chief about that, michelle cook. >> our closest about 15, 20 miles away, so we don't have any hospitals close by, which is another concern because we're on an island and the hospitals are so far away. >> so what will people do? >> that's going to be a tough decision. you know, it's -- that's what concerns me about people not evacuating. because if we have high winds and somebody's injured and it's not safe for public safety to get to them or get over a bridge, what do we do? that's going have to be a decision that's made at that moment based upon the totality of the circumstances. you know, it's tough. i don't want to have to give a death notice to your family because you chose to stay. >

florida. that makes it difficult for people who are trying to evacuate because where do you evacuate to. tampa could get hit by it, jacksonville gets hit like this. the calls they make about evacuations are not done lightly and done to try to save people's lives and i think that having seen harvey and the devastation that happened, i think most floridans are not taking any chances with this storm and i think that they are airing on the side of caution which wasn't necessarily the case last year with matthew because it had been a long time since florida had been hit by hurricane and we had millions of people in our state who had never experienced a hurricane. having seen what happened with harvey, people did not want to take chances with this thing, it's a big storm, as you know, it has slowed down a little bit but it's still powerful at a category 4. lauren: congressman, we are running against the clock here, many people just want to get out of the state of florida, what do you do, you go to a

this is really, really bad news for florida. south florida is watching it closely. it will be be affecting south florida in a big way. this is still a large hurricane. it's larger than the state of florida is wide. if it moves up the center of florida, it will be impacting both coastlines with tropical storm force winds at least. there's a storm right now. the most dangerous side and direction of motion is the northeast side of the eye. at this point, as far as the track is concerned, it looks like miami add the east coast of florida will see the most as far as the tornado threat. here is the track. category 4 potentially, maybe slamming a lot of the florida keys into south florida. this is ever glade territory, this is swampland. it's very warm here too. i'll show you the rest of the track and what we can expect >>> thank you, stheen heena. >>> we're working all angles. let's give you a look at the satellite eye of the storm. 12 people have been killed and we expect the number to rise. the images we're seeing are heartbreaking. homes have been reduced to rubble in

a hurricane warning is in effect for southern florida, the florida keys, lake okeechobee, and florida bay, while hurricane watches have been issued northward into central florida. ( mark ) four search and rescue teams from california are now heading to florida to help deal with hurricane irma including a team from menlo park. the teams got the call an hour after another team from menlo park returned home from hurricane harvey. officials say it will be a different group of people heading to florida. the new team includes search and rescue personnel, hazardous materials and communications specialists, doctors and rescue dogs. ( mark ) team members will be heading to florida as soon as their equipment is loaded up and ready to go. (mark) dozens of adoptable pets are now in the bay area after they were evacuated from florida animal shelters ahead o

when we tell you this storm is headed to florida in a stronger level any storm has hit florida, i need you to pay attention and you can survive the storm, pay attention to where you are during the storm. >> thank you so much. sam champion. listen to this man. >> he knows of what he speaks. >> let's go to bahamas where irma is passing over. at one point it passed by one of the islands with winds up to 150 miles per hour. nbc's rehema ellis is live in naus saw. the islands could see 25 feet storm surge. can you hear us? >> i'm afraid -- >> we'll get that mixed up. this happens in storm, we lose the connection once in a while. >> if you think about this, when you look at the images of miami, this storm is going to rake over florida and georgia and caroli e carolina. it's not like you can say let's head north -- >> in south florida, here's new time lapse video just in in key largo showing the drive along u.s. 1. roads are mostly empty. you never see this on the drive north because everybody who has gotten out of here has largely left. irma is crawling towards miami. the latest update we ju

florida straits and the florida keys. this is a massive storm. folks remember hurricane andrew, this storm is 2 1/2 times the size of andrew. we're seeing tropical storm force winds affecting miami and areas across the florida keys like key largo and hard on this. this will get worse and worse for this part of the country over the next 6 to ten hours. here's what we've seen over the last couple of days. this is the spaghetti plots. each line represents a tropical forecast model. they are all bunched together which is a good sign which means we have confidence that the storm is going to graze cuba over the next 1 hours and barrel north through the florida keys. here's key west right here and make a second landfall between for fort meyers and naples and western side of the peninsula, tampa you're under the gun. moves into southern georgia and alabama and tennessee. we have a good idea where the storm will make landfall. here's the bad news the storm surge because of it's new projected path is spectacular from fort meyers through naples, marco islan

keys and south florida. the eye of the storm is making landfall in southern keys. powerful category 4 storm has top within of nearly 130 miles per hour. it will turn and barrel up the state's west coast. tornado warnings have been issued for a large swath of south florida. jeff glor is just outside of the mouth of tampa bay. expected to take a direct hit from the storm overnight. jeff, good morning, again. >> reporter: charlie, good morning to you. actually we just got a tornado warning just to the east of tampa. we expect to see more of those as the morning goes on and as this storm goes on. we're in tampa-st.pete. we're at tampa-st.pete beach along the gulf of mexico. city of tampa is to our northeast. clear water to the north. sarasota to our south. when we pulled in here last night not a lot of buildings were boarded up and that's because this shifted, this storm has shifted to the west now and as you said is expected to potentially hit us head on here in the tampa bay area, an area that has not seen a m

you're familiar with florida. that water doesn't go anywhere and it's a real problem, especially when you're talking about, again, some of these points of interest. the hospital here, they're going to have to get that hospital evacuated if it looks like this thing is going to make significant landfall in tampa. but again, cone of uncertainty. so we'll keep an eye on that. >> and a few hours to get this done and dealt be. >>> that's going to do it for me this hour. thomas roberts picks up our coverage at the top of the hour live from miami with the very latest on the path of hurricane irma and what lies ahead for those who did not evacuate to higher ground. stay with us here on msnbc. >>> it is 11:00 a.m. out west, 2:00 p.m. here in florida. and i'm in miami. we've just heard from the governor, rick scott, once again over the last couple of hours, delivering this dire warning for people, if you live in south florida, in an evacuation zone, time is running out for you. we've got the latest tracking for hurricane irm

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on sunday. >> the greatest concern at this point is now for the florida keys, southwestern florida and still potential for hurricane force winds on the east coast. >> reporter: and irma could bring a storm surge of 12 feet to some areas and officials are warning some 9 million people could lose power, some of those for weeks. annie. >> lauren blanchard reporting live from florida thank you so much and stay safe. >>> 8:52. you're watching fox5 news at 8:00. we'll be right back after short break. ah, dinner. throughout history, the one meal when we come together, break bread, share our day and connect as a family. [ bloop, clicking ] and connect, as a family. just, uh one second voice guy. [ bloop ] huh? hey? i paused it. bam, family time. so how is everyone? find your awesome with xfinity xfi and change the way you wifi. >> ♪ >> well, basements are full of all kinds of junk but one home in new york takes the cake. officers executing a search warrant on the home after they received the tip

the sun is up in florida. now tropical storm irma is pounding the northeastern part of this state with flooding in jacksonvil jacksonville. now, one hour ago, irma was downgraded from a category a-1 to a tropical storm with maximum sustain winds of 70 miles per hour. it's moving towards tallahassee in the florida panhandle. then appears headed for georgia and alabama. cities like naples took a direct hit from the storm. there was flooding in miami and the florida keys. but in other areas, the damage was noted an baz ed aed an bad. the mayor of

florida keys, florida straits. there's miami, all the rains pushing west into the southern florida area. barbuda 90, 95% of all the homes were destroyed or wiped out, even the trees were tripped of their leaves. this is the view in st. maartans, aerial photo. turks and caicos severe extensive damage done to this island chain. the runways were submerged. a lot of trees stripped. look at the damage. 50% of the damage are homes in this area received extensive damage there, as well. now, again, the hurricane is north of cuba, havana is situated right there. it will travel west for the next ten hours or so. make a right hand turn first landfall over sugarloaf key and the second landfall around naples sunday morning, 2, 4:00 a.m.. it will travel north into the deep south georgia, alabama and the tennessee valley. at that point it weakens dramatically, it loses its fuel source which is warm water and weakens into a tropical storm or tropical low. it will push into the mid atlantic states that means rain, nothing more than

let's bring in our correspondent he's live in florida city florida. that is the southern most point before you hit the florida keys. it's where a lot of the people from the keys decided to come in because it's safer than being in the florida keys. >> that's right. and we're starting to see a break in the weather, a little bit ago we were down in the keys checking things out there. key largo and a little further south and we met with the emergency crews down there, how they were hunkerring down. we talked with them and decided we should be on the mainland. it sounded like u.s. 1 that connects us to the keys will be washed out. we came back over. i'll show you where that is now in relation to us. this is us. you see that? we're in a little bit of a break from these outer bands. the wind has subsided and we're not seeing so much weather. we'll do a little multitasking. show you the behind the scenes of how we're preparing. right now, we are in florida city. and the situation is such that the hotels around here have been evacuated. and so we've been talki

here's a look at the outer edges working through the florida straits and the florida keys. west palm beach seeing heavy feeder bands and torrential rains wind 50 to 60 miles per hour in south beach. later this evening, we could see tropical storm force winds affecting marco island and fort meyers and key west, 67 miles per hour. the storm makes the right hand turn and approaches southern florida by 5:00 a.m. key la are.largo, 75-mile an ho. the storm pulls away airntle. a little bit, the winds calm down sunday night into monday morning. we're talking about tropical storm force winds across southern florida. the winds are a big, big problem with the storm. it should push over sugarloaf key tomorrow morning between 2 and 5:00 a.m., a secondary hit around naples fort meyers beach area during the first part of sunday afternoon. when i come back we'll have more on hurricane irma. >> thank you for the update. millions are trying to evacuate southern florida by air, train or car, but frustration is running high as man are running into long lines and delays. "action news" anchor br

but in terms of florida, it now seems very likely that in some way, this storm will move towards florida. the forecast takes it towards the south—west of florida, so if we run the graphics further forward through saturday night and into sunday, you will see the way the storm system looks likely to edge across the very warm waters, sea temperatures around 31 degrees. that's why we think it could strengthen again. still likely to be a major hurricane as it makes landfall towards the south—west florida. then it looks most likely to edge up the western side of florida, places like tampa could see very, very heavy rain, some extremely strong winds, storm surge as well. a set of impact that could cause devastating effects. a word onjose, is that normal to have two hurricanes coming so close together? we are approaching the peak of the atlantic hurricane season, so not so much of a surprise. jose is taking a slightly different track and is passing at the moment to the north of the leeward islands. it looks like it won't make a direct hit to places like barbuda, which is good news for them,

if there is no real good news here for florida. >> jon: meanwhile, folks in south florida are eating the warning to head to safety. they are facing crowded roads and long lines for gas as more than half a million people in the miami-dade area are told to evacuate. what are the conditions like no now? >> still more than 36 hours out, conditions here are already beginning to kick up, we are seeing some wind gusts of 20 miles an hour, there is very different mood in south florida. in previous storms people would be sticking it out, writing it out but there is real palpable fear here. people who have not left in previous storms are leaving, there is fear because of what people have seen already from the storm. a death toll that right now stands at 23 but continues to rise throughout the day and the utter destruction it has already caused in the caribbean, making some islands uninhabitable. people are afraid of the storm does indeed hit south florida as a category 4, they know what that means, they have been through it in the past. it could mean downed tree lines, downed power lines, roof

florida. once again as a category 5 there. all this while florida braces for what lies ahead to the next 48 hours. tough 48 hours. and survivors in the caribbean are adding up the damage left behind. the number is big. at this hour, hurricane irma is barreling down on cuba as a category 5 storm, with ferocious 160-mile-an-hour winds. the massive storm's path shifted west as it regained some strength, now charting a course expected to churn through the florida keys, before hitting naples, ft. myers and florida's east coast expected to be batters by this storm, the size of texas almost. the big question is how the storm's path through cuba may impact its course and whether the storm will weaken at all before reaching the keys. florida's governor is urging those on the state's west coast to be prepared to head to a local shelter if they do not evacuate by noon local time, saying not following evacuation orders could cost you your life. 23 people have died so far in connection with the storm that

and florida state. back to you in new york. >> lester holt there with quite the ominous sky behind you at miami beach. a virtual ghost town. thank you. >>> as irma shifts slightly west, some residents who thought they would be spared from the storm's worst are now planning for catastrophe. kristen dahlgren is in in ft. myers with more. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. to give you an idea of how attitudes here have changed, yesterday during the day i saw people out on their boats, out on the beach. i went to a shelter last night, it doesn't open until 10:00 this morning, there were already people lined up to get in. along florida's west coast, there is new urgency. what many thought was a miss has models shifting this way. >> we're not as far away from the center as we had originally thought. >> reporter: grace and frank mazzarella scrambling to finish storm proposals sanibel island. >> my family wants us out of florida totalen. that's a little bit difficult to do right now with traffic, airlines

a hurricane warning is in effect for southern florida, the florida keys, lake okeechobee, and florida bay, while hurricane watches have been issued northward into central florida. ( darya ) and this morning... national guard crews from the bay area will be heading to florida to help with rescue operations once the storm hits.( mark ) will tran is live at moffett field where those crews are set to take off this morning. will. ( will ) and happening in less than an hour... the california national guard will be sending crews to florida. the silicon valley based air national guardsmen will be leaving from moffett field at 6:00 this morning. they are heading to florida to provide search and rescue support for those who will be affected by hurricane irma. ( darya ) we will check back with you through out the morning. ( mark ) and two bay area airports are sending tsa workers to assist in reopening florida airports after hurricane irma hits the area. roughly 250 t-s-a workers from oakland international airport and mineta san jose international airport... will be positioned at airports throug

that is a live look at florida city, florida. they're starting to really feel the effects of hurricane irma. >> we're tracking this storm as it makes it's way to florida. let's get you caught up on the latest. packing winds of 130 miles per hour. the next hurricane update, we'll get that in about an hour and a half. >> while the storm has been tracking to the west, there are still florida's west and east coast about a potentially catastrophic storm surge as high as 15 feet in some places. >> it's because of that and the dangerous winds that irma lead to the largest evacuation in the state of florida's history. hundreds of shelters are open across the area. >> we want to go to gadi schwartz who is driving around the area. >> reporter: good morning, the winds are powerful, very powerful but not at what we'll see later today. they have not reached their peak yet. straight in front of us, this is highway 1, u.s. 1, we're creeping down it and it's the main artery that connects homestead, south florida, down to the keys. wow, did you s

let's go to merit island florida. you were getting pelted with rain yet, brynn, what are you seeing today? >> reporter: pelted today too. that's slowing down. the sandbagging efforts, protect of home efforts because a mandatory evacuation in effect at 3:00 today here on the island. the barrier islands. these are people filling cars one by one with sand bags, ten per car. as you can imagine, people are quickly trying to get whatever they can to help protect the homes. i want to talk to this gentleman. he is nice to talk tous. he is an island resident and you've lived whoer a long time. and you're sticking this out. >> i evacuated matthew. i feel like this is going to be a category 2 or 3 by the time it hits us. i i've got a pretty strong home so i'm pretty confident it will survive. >> taking chances despite the warnings. >> if it got above a 3 but i think we home could survive. >> i have a plan b? >> i may last minute if it's going to be a 4 or 5. but if it stays below that i'm stick tg out. >> does it worry you if yo

it's already having an impact on florida keys. it is expected to make landfall here in the next 2a brits. there is still a bit of uncertainty as to where the banquet is likely to make landfall. extensive heavy rain, we are looking at damaging gusts of wind. this huge storm surge. 0nce at damaging gusts of wind. this huge storm surge. once we see it moving through, the wind driving in that water along the low—lying coastal areas. major issue, pushing its way steadily northwards and weakening considerably. still a lot of heavy rain butjust considerably. still a lot of heavy rain but just take considerably. still a lot of heavy rain butjust take a look atjose, still in the western atlantic. at the moment, it is expected to be king of the next couple of days. it is likely to sit your pretty next 4-5 is likely to sit your pretty next 11—5 days. we can't rule it out. there is the potential that it greatly intensify and start to head west. chip caster is a senior forecaster. he's booked as a short time ago. he gave us the latest situ

he makes his arrival here in naples, florida, . coming down as ari fleischer said to give a boost to those workers who have been working around-the-clock and sweltering temperatures and really making a sacrifice to try and help people. pardon me. this is the press corps, not the president. my mistake. >> that's not marine one, that's the osprey and i never flew in that. the press did. >> melissa: we are waiting the president still, although the prices they there, thank goodness. leave him, i'll send it to you. >> leland: the press is there as it is our live camera, mike tobin standing of i for their presidents arrival. we already heard governor rick scott earlier in the hour talk about gas and getting gas into florida. gas prices have gone up a little bit in the wake of these two hurricanes, but our next guest says that america's energy independence courtesy of president trump will allow us to take advantage of the new global stage. we'll tell you how and why when we come back. what's the story behind green mountain coffee and fair

wider than the state of florida. there have been so many comparisons to hurricane andrew back in august of 1992. you can fit a couple of andrews into irma. more than 5.5 million people have been told to get out of those evacuation areas. hundreds headed to shelters. in some areas thousands of people. some spent the night on the road waiting for the shelters to open but for those planning to stay where they are, governor rick scott has these words. >> stay together and help each other. don't get on the road. we have shelters in your community. go to those shelters. you can go to your family, friends, go to those shelters but we don't want people on the road when the storm starts to hit. >> reporter: we've got a team of reporters across florida and across the caribbean. we're going to start in cuba which is getting the worst of hurricane irma right now. patrick is there live and it's been pretty rough for you for a couple of hours now. how are the conditions now? >> reporter: we've been getting battered all night and n

marco island being on the west coast of florida, the southwest florida gulf coast, and we know that there are some 200 miles of coastline and when you think about over fort myers and heading down south and around the tip of the peninsula and over into miami, they could be affected by deadly storm surge with irma and we have local officials here at the ready for whatever this storm is going to bring, but what about federal officials? remember, they are still busy. they are at work helping the victims of hurricane harvey, so how are they going to be able to pull off this herculean effort in just a matter of hours? i'm going to speak with the former fema deputy director next about that. >>> and as 25% of florida's population is escaping to safety out of irma's path, we've got drivers confronting issues with where to find places that are open with gas. we've got gasbuddy.com. this morning talking about critical shortages in miami, fort lauderdale, with at least 65% of stations out of gas and that's followed by gainesville, florida, and west palm beach with more than 50% of stations out of gas

taking direct aim at florida right now. the latest forecast is out, let's get a quick update from our meteorologist tom sader at the cnn severe weather center. what could we expect, tom? >> well, wolf, at the top of the hour we got a new hurricane track and it dift did shift about 15, 20 miles back westward, something since we were just focussing on the track that also came out in this advisory, get this, hurricane jose's been upgraded to a major hurricane, category three, making it's way towards the islands that have been decimated. we've heard from the prime minister it's barely habitable. hurricane watch is in effect. and these people have nowhere to go. there is no convention center like there was in houston. keep them in your thoughts and prayers. it's hard to imagine that, but it looks like it will pull away but get dangerously close. now on irma, continues to move at a good clip. we're at 16 miles per hour, that's much better than harvey, which you could outwalk at one to two. rainfall rates are lighter, but this is

well, all homes in florida, it is a new home, all new homes in florida have to be built to a hurricane code, so i am hoping that is high enough. we have hurricane shutters up in the windows, we have unplugged everything in case there is an electrical surge but really our biggest concern will be the flooding. there is nothing we can do about that. there were no sandbags available in the town leading up to the hurricane, so we were not able to put sandbags at any of the entrances. so we are just hoping it will only be a few inches of flooding but it could be much worse. you have taken three docks with you but the cat has had to stay put? yes, iam but the cat has had to stay put? yes, i am an animal lover, so i have three dogs and four cats. we took the dogs with us but the cats had to remain. a two story home, which is unusual in this area, the cats are u psta i rs unusual in this area, the cats are upstairs and hopefully they will be fine. it is kind of a worry leaving them behind, but couldn't move the cats. how long are you likely to be away from home? we don't know. we are hoping the

if the people of south florida coastal florida, as well, share one common enemy, it's water. the area had long been a swamp. it was susceptible to flooding. you couldn't farm it. you couldn't build on it. through the marvel of engineering and the desire to make a buck, developers and army corps of engineers made a way. the problem is, the water still comes and as we just saw over the weekend, south florida is still in harm's way. michael wrotes about this in a remarkable piece, the paradise that should never have been. he joins us from orlando and in new york, contributing writer for "rolling stone." he has a book called "the water will come, rising water sinking cities." it's fascinating because, you know, miami did not get hit by the hurricane in this direct way people feared and yet, you see precisely what you talk about, which is the susceptible it has to flooding. >> well, when you build in a floodplain, sometimes it gets wet. we talked about how they are called floodplains because it's plain they flood. it wasn't that long ago people thought it was absurd that anybody w

hurricane irma headed toward southwest florida. fort myers florida, marco is first. stay with us. in jellyfish. in clinical trials, prevagen has been shown to improve short-term memory. prevagen. the name to remember. shepard: vice president speaking at fema government will be brought to bear to support the efforts of governor scott and state and local officials across florida and we will continue to do that. important to remember this is and continues to be a very dangerous storm and we urge everyone within the sound of our voice to heed the warnings of local officials, whether that be to shelter in place were the furthest northern parts of the state, still an opportunity according to local officials to move out of the way and evacuate to a safe shelter. but people need to take this storm with great seriousness. it is a storm of historic and at the proportion and the efforts of every level of our federal government are here to stand alongside the state and local officials. and the life-saving mission and very soon and the recovery mission and very soon and the rebui

central florida. what is your message this morning seeing where the storm is and what we can expect in the coming day or two? >> i'm a native floridian lab then threw storms before. i can tell you this is the real deal out of storm. it is big and it is bad. you have to listen to your experts, to your emergency operations people because our goal is to keep everyone safe. when the storm is tracking like it is, for those of you in that area, they said yes if ms. in fits and spells, but i can remember charlie back in 2004 they told us was going into tampa. like in a microsecond, they said it's going to port charlotte incoming data across your county. we saw her with it damage on the east side of the county and we were prepping on the left side. you can never, ever say you are safe until the storm is all the weight on. trailing train for this will start a key west, mark all the way up to state that the buzz saw, every one of florida touched by this. >> they absolutely are. the storm surge very important to

de la florida. la zona de los cayos donde llegÓ por primera vez este huracÁn. un Área de casi 400 millas, tamaÑo del estado de texas. fÍjense ustedes amigos, nosotros estamos en estos momentos en el centro de la capital de miami. el centro el downtown de miami. en el Área conocida como brickell. el centro financiero de esta gran ciudad. y estÁ totalmente bajo agua. quiero que escuchen, y vean un poco de lo que siento en estos momentos. me voy a mover lentamente. porque el agua como pueden ver estÁ llegando mucho. escuchen este huracÁn y el mas fuerte en no estÁ aquÍ en si no en la costa oeste. escuchen esto. no he entrado a la calle. esta es la calle 12. la avenida bri key. estÁ a mi izquierda. no se cuanto mÁs puedo entrar. mido 6 pies 2 pulgadas. me llega ya a mi derecha estÁ la bahÍa de biscayne. ahÍ el agua en una bahia parece un mar de ocÉano. parece atlÁntico en su peor momento. el agua, las rÁfagas.com bi nan dos para entrar a esta ciudad. precisamente, en el centro de miam