‘Worst Case Scenario’ Likely as Powerful Hurricane Irma Targets Florida

Florida is on high alert as forecasters are calling Hurricane Irma a “worst case scenario” for residents in South Florida.

According to the latest forecasts, Hurricane Irma is set to strike southern Florida early Sunday morning as a devastating Category 4 hurricane with wind speeds near 150 mph. According to the Weather Channel, Irma is likely the strongest storm to hit Florida since Hurricane Charley 13 years ago.

Over the past few days, Hurricane Irma has battered parts of the Caribbean as a Category 5 storm with sustained winds of 180 mph. Areas in the Barbuda and St. Martin were hit particularly hard. Overnight Thursday, the storm weakened slightly to a Category 4. Meteorologists expect the system to weaken more, but current projections show it could hit Florida with 150 mph winds late Saturday night into early Sunday morning.

Hurricane warnings have been issued for South Florida, the Bahamas, and parts of Cuba. The latest projections show parts of Florida could be hit by a storm surge anywhere from three to 10 feet. In many cases, the storm surge and flooding usually leads to the greatest loss of life, and officials are warning that if evacuation warnings are ignored, people are putting their own lives at risk.

Hurricane Irma’s forecasted track has it moving northward over the entire state of Florida and into parts of Georgia, Alabama, the Carolinas, and Tennessee as far as Tuesday and Wednesday.

Hurricane Irma is one of the most powerful storms in the Atlantic Ocean in recorded history. With all the right conditions coming together, Florida could see its most devastating storm since Hurricane Andrew struck 25 years ago.