Cat 5 Hurricane Irma 2nd strongest ever in Atlantic

Throughout the day this Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2017, Category 5 Hurricane Irma has increased in power again and again, and as of 2 p.m. ET, contains sustained winds of 185 mph, tying with three others as the second most powerful* Atlantic hurricane on record.

The immediate threat is to the islands, and it will be a massive one to the British Virgin Islands, Anguilla and Antigua and Barbuda. We have details in our story.

Believe it or not, there's not much of a precedent for a storm this strong on the Caribbean islands. Only one Category 5 (David, 1979, much further away and to the south of Puerto Rico), and only eight Category 4 hurricanes have passed through this area since 1950.

This is the most impressive hurricane I've ever seen on the Caribbean Radar.

Beyond that? Models are still waffling, but Florida seems to be under enough of a threat that people across the state should be preparing now. Our story on the topic also warns those on the East coast because the storm is expected to move up along Florida and into the Southeast.

• If you knew you had to evacuate in four hours, what would you take? What about 30 minutes? We have checklists for both.

We also say in that story,

I would add to that the threat of a government shutdown later this month, which won't stop but will slow down government support for disaster areas.

Report a Typo