Hurricane Harvey devastated parts of Texas and Louisiana just a week ago and now it appears another storm, Hurricane Irma, may not be far behind to strike the East Coast of the United States.
Irma, a powerful Category 3 storm, is still miles away from the East Coast of the U.S., but forecasters say it’s possible the storm could intensify and strike Florida or other parts of the Atlantic Coast by next weekend.
Environmental conditions could be favorable to Irma strengthening to a Category 5 storm, the first since Matthew in 2016.
Irma recently went through a natural phenomenon called the eyewall replacement cycle, in which storms’ inner cores erode and a new one forms. This replacement usually decreases the intensity of a storm, but creates a larger reach.
As of Sunday afternoon, the center of Irma was still about 900 miles east of the Leeward Islands and nearly 2,200 miles east-southeast of Miami.
Watch alerts were issued for parts of the Caribbean as Irma crept westward, moving about 14 miles per hour with wind speeds up to 115 miles per hour. More watch alerts could be issued for the U.S. Virgin Islands and other Eastern Caribbean countries as the storm continues on its path.
The current forecast cone is up to 700 miles wide, which means most of the Atlantic Coast should keep an eye out for the powerful storm.
It could take over a week for Irma to reach Florida, if it heads towards the Sunshine State at all.
Former National Hurricane Center director and hurricane expert Rick Knabb said there were many possible trajectories for the storm, many of which could significantly impact Florida.
“You’re going to see model run after model run changing from cycle to cycle, and some are going to imply greater threats to Florida,” Knabb said. “We all have a tendency, and I do it too, to try to figure out which one is right. But the only thing we can do at 10 days is realize it’s the peak of the hurricane season and do the thing we’re supposed to do: find out if you’re in an evacuation zone and where you would go.”
Gov. Rick Scott is also taking the storm seriously and urged Floridians to make sure they had a storm plan moving forward as Irma looms.
“[Florida] knows how important it is to be prepared,” the governor tweeted Sunday. “Encourage your loved ones to have a plan ahead of any potential storm.”
On top of having a hurricane plan, Scott also counseled Floridians to stock up on disaster supply kits, which provide food, water and other necessities for three to seven days in the event of a natural disaster.
On Sunday, Scott held an emergency weather briefing with the National Weather Service regarding the storm and will continue to monitor its progress.
