document_title: Hurricane Irma

question_text: what is the official track of hurricane irma

question_tokens: what is the official track of hurricane irma

text: Hurricane Irma

text: Meteorological history

text: The National Hurricane Center (NHC) began monitoring a tropical wave over western Africa on August 26.[7] The tropical wave moved off the coast of the continent late on August 27. Throughout the next two days, showers and thunderstorms associated with the wave became better organized and gradually coalesced into a low pressure area, as the system passed just south of and then through the Cape Verde Islands on August 29,[8] with the NHC stating that any significant organization of the disturbance would result in the classification of a tropical depression.[9] Further organization over the next 24 hours or so led to classification of the disturbance as Tropical Storm Irma, at 15:00 UTC on August 30, based on scatterometer data and satellite estimates.[10] With warm sea surface temperatures and low wind shear, strengthening was anticipated, with the only hindrance being slightly cooler waters and drier air.

text: The nascent storm began developing upper-level poleward outflow, as an anticyclone became established over the system, with banding features becoming increasingly evident in satellite images.[11] Early on August 31, shortly after the development of a central dense overcast (CDO) and an eye feature, Irma rapidly intensified beginning at 09:00 UTC on August 31, with winds increasing from 70 mph (110 km/h) to 115 mph (185 km/h) in only 12 hours.[12] On September 2, a ship passed 60 mi (90 km) to the west of the center of Irma, recording maximum winds of 45 mph (70 km/h), which indicated that the eye of Irma remained compact.[13][14] A strengthening subtropical ridge over the central North Atlantic pushed Irma from a western to southwestern direction on September 2 and 3.[15][16][17][18] The first aircraft reconnaissance mission departed from Barbados on the afternoon of September 3, discovering an eye 29 mi (47 km) in diameter and surface winds of 115 mph (185 km/h).[17][19]

text: On September 4, after moving into more favorable conditions, Irma strengthened into a Category 4 hurricane.[20] As it continued approaching the Leeward Islands, Irma underwent a second and more robust period of rapid intensification, becoming a Category 5 hurricane by 11:45 UTC on the following day, with winds of 175 mph (280 km/h).[21] As it began to take on annular characteristics, the extremely powerful hurricane continued to intensify,[22] with maximum sustained winds peaking at 185 mph (295 km/h) near 00:00 UTC on September 6 – which would remain steady and unchanged for the next 37 hours. Six hours later, Irma made landfall along the northern coast of Barbuda near peak strength.[23] Later that day, around 18:00 UTC, the storm's pressure bottomed out at 914 hPa (27.0 inHg) – this was the lowest in the Atlantic since Dean in 2007. While maintaining its intensity, Irma made successive landfalls on September 7, at approximately 12:00 UTC on Sint Maarten, and at 17:00 UTC on Ginger Island and Tortola, in the British Virgin Islands.

text: Shortly before 06:00 UTC on September 8, Irma made landfall on the Bahamian island Little Inagua.[24] About three hours later, an eyewall replacement cycle caused Irma to weaken to a Category 4 hurricane, but the storm regained Category 5 status 18 hours later before making landfall in Cuba. After weakening to a Category 3 due to land interaction with Cuba, Irma reintensified into a Category 4 hurricane while crossing over the Straits of Florida. At 13:10 UTC on September 10, Irma made landfall in Cudjoe Key, Florida with maximum sustained winds of 130 mph (215 km/h) and a central pressure of 929 hPa (27.4 inHg).[25] Later that day, at 19:35 UTC, Irma made landfall in Marco Island with maximum sustained winds of 115 mph (185 km/h) and a central pressure of 940 hPa (28 inHg); the Marco Island Police Department recorded a wind gust of 130 mph (215 km/h).[26] The Naples, FL Municipal Airport measured wind gusts up to 142 mph (229 km/h). About a half an hour later, Irma made landfall in Naples at the same intensity. Irma weakened into a Category 2 storm once inland, and below hurricane intensity at 12:00 UTC on September 11. At 03:00 UTC on September 12, Irma weakened to a tropical depression over the Georgia-Alabama border, and degenerated into a post-tropical low about 24 hours later north of Tupelo, Mississippi.[27] Irma's remnants continued moving towards the northwest over the next day, before turning northward and then accelerating to the northeast on September 14.[28] Early on September 15, Irma's remnants began moving off the New England coastline, becoming increasingly disorganized while continuing to weaken. Later on the same day, Irma's remnants began interacting with a cold front stretching over Newfoundland.[29] On September 16, Irma's remnant circulation collapsed, and the majority of Irma's remnant moisture was absorbed into Hurricane Jose later that day.[30]

text: Data collected by NASA showed that ocean surface temperatures in the path of Irma were above 30 °C (86 °F) at the time, more than enough to sustain a Category 5 hurricane.[31] Additionally, ocean surface temperatures in areas along the Strait of Florida extended to 32 °C (90 °F),[32][33] which could support a maximum potential intensity of 200 miles per hour (320 km/h), if ideal conditions had been met.[34]

text: Preparations

text: Caribbean

text: Given that Irma's forecast track was along much of the Caribbean island chain, hurricane warnings were issued for the northern Leeward Islands, Puerto Rico and parts of Hispaniola on September 5.[35]

text: On September 4, Puerto Rico declared a state of emergency.[36] By September 6, the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency had deployed response teams in Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands. Supplies, including food rations, medical supplies, and blankets, were pre-staged in strategic locations on the islands for distribution.[37]

text: In Antigua and Barbuda, residents safeguarded their homes and cleaned up their properties in anticipation of strong winds. Emergency crews were put on standby at public shelters and hospitals by September 5 to assist with any evacuations.[38] Expecting a direct hit, more than half of the residents on Barbuda took shelter,[39] and relief supplies were preemptively mobilized.[40]

text: In Guadeloupe, low-lying and cliff-edge homes were evacuated at the threat of flooding and erosion. Schools and public businesses closed on September 5 and 6. Hospitals stocked up on three days' worth of supplies and checked the functionality of their generators.[41][42] Of the island's 32 municipalities, 22 activated their emergency plans; 1,500 people were urged to take shelter.[43] The island sustained relatively minor damage and became the base for relief efforts on St. Martin (Collectivity of Saint Martin) and St. Barts (Saint Barthélemy).[44]

text: Though the core of the hurricane was expected to remain north of the island, a yellow alert was issued for Martinique due to the likelihood of rough seas.[45] The island dispatched relief supplies and military reinforcements to its neighboring islands of Guadeloupe, Saint Martin and Saint Barthélemy, which faced a greater risk of a direct impact.[46] The National Emergency Management Organization on Saint Lucia urged small craft operators and swimmers to be mindful of forecasts for high surf.[47] Small Craft Warnings and High Surf Advisories were hoisted for Dominica, where residents were urged to remain vigilant of the potential for high waves, landslides, and flooding.[48]

text: In the Turks and Caicos, evacuation orders were issued for low-lying areas starting September 5. Schools were closed, government buildings were boarded up, and shelters were opened.[49] Officials spread warnings to residents in English, Creole, and Spanish via social media, radio, SMS text, and WhatsApp.[50]

text: On September 5, the Dominican Republic activated the International Charter on Space and Major Disasters, thus providing for humanitarian satellite coverage;[51] the United States and Haiti followed suit two days later.[52][53] According to officials, 11,200 people were evacuated from vulnerable areas prior to the storm's arrival.[54] 7,400 tourists were moved to Santo Domingo, away from beach resorts.[55]

text: In Haiti, government officials and aid organizations struggled with early preparation and evacuation efforts. While some officials blamed reluctance and indifference on the part of the population, others "admitted they were not prepared for the onslaught and no mandatory evacuation orders were in place ahead of Irma's approach," per The Guardian.[55][56] Local officials contended that they had not received promised funds, supplies, or equipment from the national government. The United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti prepared its 1,000 peacekeepers and engineers to assist.[57]

text: In The Bahamas, the government began preparations the week prior to the hurricane's arrival, including securing national sports facilities to use as shelters.[58] By September 7, the government had evacuated 1,609 people by air from the southern islands, including 365 from Bimini.[59] Controlled cutting of the power supply to southern and central Bahamian islands was conducted in advance of the storm.[60] Shelters were made available, though usage was low due to most evacuees staying with family on other islands.[61] Of the 2,679 foreign tourists still in The Bahamas on September 7, about 1,200 were being housed at Atlantis Paradise Island, one of the most hurricane-ready structures in the country.[62]

text: In Cuba, meteorologists did not initially predict a direct hit.[63] Fuel conservation was enacted in Camagüey Province to ensure that enough would be available during post-storm power outages.[64] The Civil Defense evacuated nearly one million people from low-lying areas, including thousands of Canadian and European tourists in the Jardines del Rey.[65][63] Dolphins at a Cayo Guillermo resort were evacuated by helicopter.[63]

text: Mainland United States

text: Florida

text: On September 4, Florida Governor Rick Scott declared a state of emergency for Florida,[66] and placed 100 members of the Florida National Guard on duty to assist in preparations. All 7,000 troops were ordered to be on duty by September 8.[67] Officials advised residents to stock their hurricane kits.[68] Governor Scott suspended tolls on all toll roads in Florida, including Florida's Turnpike, starting at 5:00 p.m. on September 5.[69] All state offices in Florida were closed on September 8.[70] All schools in the Florida Keys were ordered closed from September 6 until further notice. Mandatory evacuations for the islands were expected, with tourists to leave on September 6 and residents the following day; an estimated 25% of residents stayed.[71][72] Schools and colleges were closed in 44 of the state's 67 counties, before Governor Scott ordered all state colleges, universities, schools, and offices to be closed from September 8 to 11.[73]

text: On September 6, the mayor of Fort Lauderdale ordered mandatory evacuations for all residents east of US 1.[74] The city of Tampa, on the west coast of Florida, declared a local state of emergency.[75] The University of Central Florida canceled classes from September 7 to 17, and its Orlando campuses closed from September 8 to 17.[76][77] Shelters were opened in the following counties: Broward, Flagler, Hardee, Hendry, Hillsborough, Manatee, Marion, Miami-Dade, Orange, Palm Beach, and Pasco, Pinellas and Brevard.[78] Brevard has 3 types of shelters: pet friendly, general population, and special needs. While not every shelter opens for every emergency, there were four pet friendly shelters, 11 general population shelters, and five special needs shelters which were not advertised.[79] A special needs shelter "provides more care and supervision than a general shelter to help meet your special needs during an evacuation."[80]

text: At around 15:00 UTC on September 7, a hurricane watch was issued for parts of South Florida, from the Jupiter Inlet to Bonita Beach, including the Florida Keys.[81] At 02:00 UTC, Friday September 8, a hurricane warning was issued for the Florida Keys, extending as far north as Miami.[82] As of 00:51 UTC September 8, the governor ordered all public schools and colleges statewide to be closed Friday and Monday.[83] Most commercial airports, including Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood International Airport, Miami International Airport, and Orlando International Airport, ceased commercial operations by late Saturday.[84] The storm surge was predicted at 10 to 15 ft at Florida's southern tip[85] and above 9 feet along the west coast.[86]

text: For the fifth time in its 45-year history, the Walt Disney World Resort was completely closed due to the storm. Its theme parks, water parks, and Disney Springs were all closed by 9:00 pm on September 9. Due to Hurricane Irma, the parks did not open on September 10 or 11. Other Orlando-area theme parks, including Universal Orlando Resort and SeaWorld Orlando, were also closed.[87] Kennedy Space Center closed until September 13, and weathered the storm with minor damage.[88]

text: By the evening of September 8, hundreds of thousands of Floridians had evacuated, making it the largest evacuation in the state's history.[74] Evacuees caused significant traffic congestion on northbound Interstate 95, Interstate 75, and Florida's Turnpike, exacerbated by the fact that the entire Florida peninsula was within the cone of uncertainty in the National Hurricane Center's forecast path in the days before the storm, so evacuees from both coasts headed north, as evacuees would not be safer by fleeing to the opposite coast.[89][90][91][92] Fuel was in short supply throughout peninsular Florida during the week before Irma's arrival, especially along evacuation routes, leading to hours-long lines at fuel stations and even escorts of fuel trucks by the Florida Highway Patrol.[89][92][93] Use of the left shoulder as a lane for moving traffic was allowed on northbound Interstate 75 from Wildwood to the Georgia state line (about 150 miles/250 km) beginning September 8 and on eastbound Interstate 4 from Tampa to State Road 429 near Celebration for a few hours on September 9.[94][95][96][97] It was the first time that the shoulder-use plan, which was introduced at the start of the 2017 hurricane season, was implemented by the state for hurricane evacuations. The shoulder-use plan was implemented in place of labor- and resource-intensive contraflow lane reversal, in which both sides of an interstate highway are used for one direction of traffic.[98][95]

text: Officials from the Environmental Protection Agency, which had been criticized for its response to Hurricane Harvey, took special measures to inspect and secure hazardous materials, especially at Superfund sites.[99]

text: Elsewhere

text: Georgia Governor Nathan Deal declared a state of emergency initially for all six coastal counties on September 6; however, the state of emergency was expanded to cover 30 counties in southeast and east central Georgia, and Governor Deal ordered mandatory evacuations for all areas east of Interstate 95 on September 7. Contraflow lane reversal for Interstate 16 took effect on September 9 at 8:00 a.m. from Savannah to Dublin, Georgia.[100] On September 8, Governor Deal further expanded the state of emergency to cover 94 counties south of the Atlanta metropolitan area, with mandatory evacuations expanded to include the entirety of Chatham County as well as low-lying areas west of I-95.[101] In total, 540,000 people on the Georgia coast were ordered to leave.[102] On September 10, the state of emergency for Georgia was extended to cover the entire state, while Atlanta was placed under its first-ever tropical storm warning.[103][72]

text: All Georgia state parks were open for free to evacuees, as was the 800-acre camping area at Atlanta Motor Speedway.[104] Reversible HOT lanes on Interstate 75 in Georgia through south metro Atlanta were open 24 hours northbound with no tolls.[105]

text: North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency on September 6,[106] with South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster following suit the same day.[107] Governor of Virginia Terry McAuliffe declared a state of emergency on September 8 in order to protect Virginia residents and to mobilize resources in support of neighboring states.[108]

text: Officials in New Orleans stated that there would not be much time for preparations if Irma failed to make the projected northward turn, but that South Texas or Florida would not be a good evacuation destination.[109] Talladega Superspeedway near Talladega, Alabama, opened their campgrounds to evacuees free of charge.[104]

text: On September 10, 2017 Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam issued an executive order allowing medical professionals in other states to practice in Tennessee to aid Hurricane Irma evacuees. This order also allowed pharmacies to give out 14-day supplies of medicine, and gave women and children from outside the state the ability to participate in the Tennessee Department of Health programs.[110]

text: Sports

text: In professional sports, the Miami Dolphins–Tampa Bay Buccaneers game scheduled for September 10 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami was postponed to November 19 due to the storm's threat.[111] The Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees had their September 11–13 series moved from Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg to Citi Field, in Queens.[112] Minor League Baseball's Florida State League, Carolina League, and Southern League called off their championship finals and as a result, named their division series winners league co-champions.[113][114][115] Miami FC played a 3–3 tie with New York Cosmos on September 7 at home.[116] Their fixture at San Francisco Deltas on September 10 was cancelled so the players and staff could prepare for the storm with their families.[117] The Orlando Pride of the National Women's Soccer League rescheduled their September 9 match to September 7.[118] Orlando City SC of Major League Soccer did not have any scheduled home games in September, but was unable to return to training in Orlando due to Hurricane Irma.[119]

text: In college football, the UCF Knights-Memphis Tigers game set to take place at 20:00 EDT on September 9 was moved to September 30, replacing UCF's game against Maine and Memphis game against Georgia State,[120][121] after originally being moved up by 25.5 hours.[122] UCF also cancelled their game against Georgia Tech originally scheduled for September 16, while UCF's stadium hosted the National Guard.[123] The USF Bulls-Connecticut Huskies football game was also cancelled.[124] The Miami Hurricanes–Arkansas State Redwolves game scheduled for September 9 at Centennial Bank Stadium in Arkansas was canceled due to travel concerns for the University of Miami.[125] The Florida Gators-Northern Colorado Bears match in Gainesville, originally scheduled for September 9 was cancelled.[126][127] The Florida State Seminoles contest against the Louisiana–Monroe Warhawks was canceled on September 8.[128] The Seminoles' rivalry game with the Hurricanes in Tallahassee, originally scheduled for the following Saturday, September 16, was postponed three weeks later to October 7. The FIU Panthers game against the Alcorn State Braves was moved up a day and relocated to Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama.[129] The Georgia Southern Eagles game against the New Hampshire Wildcats on September 9 was also moved to Legion Field for that day.[130]

text: FEMA funding

text: As of September 5, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funding was running dangerously low, due to its response to Hurricane Harvey in Texas the previous week, prompting the Trump administration to request an immediate $8 billion in additional funding as Irma approached Florida.[131] Given the rate that current funds are being consumed and the catastrophic damage, the United States Senate almost doubled the requested amount to $15.3 billion, with the understanding that this would only be about 10% of what will be required for responding to Harvey.[132]

text: Impact

text: Hurricane Irma's path was such that its impact was both far-reaching and devastating, with confirmed landfalls in Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Martin, Anguilla, Turks and Caicos, The Bahamas, Cuba, and the United States. Furthermore, the size of the storm system meant that destruction was prevalent even in territories well removed from landfall occurrences.

text:
Deaths and damage by territory[133][134]

Territory
Fatalities
Damage
(2017 USD)
Ref

Anguilla (UK)
1
7008290000000000000♠$290 million
[135][134]

Barbados
1
N/A
[135]

Barbuda (AG)
3
> 7008220000000000000♠$220 million
[136][135][137]

British Virgin Islands (UK)
4
> 7009346900000000000♠$3.47 billion
[138][137]

Cuba
10
7009220000000000000♠$2.2 billion
[139]

Haiti
1
N/A
[140]

Puerto Rico (US)
3
7009100000000000000♠$1 billion
[135][141]

Saint Kitts and Nevis
0
7007197000000000000♠$19.7 million
[142]

Saint Martin and Saint Barthélemy (FR)
11
> 7009407000000000000♠$4.07 billion
[143]

Sint Maarten (NL)
4
7009250000000000000♠$2.5 billion
[144]

Turks and Caicos Islands (UK)
0
> 7008500000000000000♠$500 million
[145]

United States
90
> 7010500000000000000♠$50 billion
[146][147][148][149]

U.S. Virgin Islands
4
7009240000000000000♠$2.4 billion
[135]

Unknown
2
N/A
[133][138]

Totals:
134
> 7010667740000000000♠$66.8 billion

text: Antigua and Barbuda

text: The eyewall of the hurricane moved over Barbuda near its record peak intensity during the night of September 5–6;[150] a local anemometer reportedly measured an unofficial gust of 155 mph (250 km/h) before being blown away.[151] Though some reports of structural damage such as blown off roofs surfaced shortly after,[152] the exact state of the island remained unclear for hours after Irma's passage, as downed phone lines ceased all communication with nearby islands.[39] Later that afternoon, Prime Minister Gaston Browne surveyed the territory by helicopter, revealing an effectively uninhabitable island. Irma damaged or destroyed 95% of the structures on Barbuda, including its hospital, schools, and both of its hotels;[153] it completely flattened some residential blocks while submerging others.[154][155] The destruction rendered the island's sole airport and much of its infrastructure inoperative—including water and telecommunication services—which further hampered relief efforts. Preliminary assessments on Barbuda suggest property damage of at least $150 million. A total of three storm-related deaths have been reported on the island.[136]

text: In addition to the catastrophic impact on Barbuda's human residents, concern turned to the storm's effects on the island's wildlife. The island's only endemic bird, the near-threatened Barbuda warbler, numbered less than 2,000 individuals prior to the hurricane.[156] It is unknown if the warbler survived the hurricane or its aftermath.[156] Barbuda's Codrington Lagoon, home to the largest colony of magnificent frigatebirds in the Caribbean, with an estimated 2,500 nesting pairs, was also inundated by the storm surge.[156]

text: Remaining just outside of Irma's strongest windfield, Antigua sustained less severe damage, in the form of leveled roofs and fences, downed power poles and lines, and uprooted trees. Some street flooding also took place in low-lying areas.[157] Three people were treated for minor storm-related injuries.[158] Forensic disaster analysts from the Center for Disaster Management and Risk Reduction Technology (CEDIM), a Germany-based risk management agency, estimate that economic losses for Antigua and Barbuda will exceed $120 million.[134]

text: Saint Martin

text: On the morning of September 6, Irma's center crossed the island of Saint Martin while the storm was near peak intensity, sweeping away entire structures, submerging roads and cars, and triggering an island-wide blackout.[159] Irma's extreme winds ripped trees out of the ground and sent vehicles and debris from damaged structures scattered across the territory.[160] On the French side of Saint-Martin, entire marinas around Marigot were left in ruins, littered with the stranded remnants of boats that had smashed into each other.[160] A hotel caught on fire, but dangerous conditions and impassable roads prevented firefighters from putting out the blaze. Another hotel lost nearly all of its ground floor.[161] Media images depicted devastated room interiors with furniture hurled around after the winds had shattered their windows.[160] Irma killed four people on the French side of the island and injured 50 others, one of whom was in critical condition. As many as 95% of the buildings there were damaged to some degree; 60% of those were totally uninhabitable.[162] Estimates from CEDIM indicate a minimum of $950 million worth of economic losses.[134] Total loses exceeded €3.5 billion ($4.07 billion USD).[143]

text: A similar situation unfolded in Sint Maarten, Saint Martin's Dutch half, as intense winds ripped through buildings and lifted vehicles aloft "as if they were matches".[163] The hurricane wreaked havoc on Princess Juliana International Airport, with "huge chunks of the building [strewn] across the runway and a jet bridge snapped in half."[164] It demolished or severely damaged about 70% of Sint Maarten's houses, forcing thousands of residents into public shelters.[165] There were two deaths and 23 injuries, 11 of which were serious, in the Dutch territory.[166] Irma is considered the worst natural disaster to hit Sint Maarten; the extent of its damage far exceeded that of any previous hurricane.[163] Prime Minister William Marlin estimates that at least €1 billion ($1.2 billion) will be necessary to restore the destruction,[167] while disaster analysts from CEDIM predict losses will exceed $1.5 billion. By September 9, 2017, the death count rose to 4, with one death due to natural causes.[168]

text: Saint Barthélemy

text: Irma left widespread destruction and disastrous flooding along its path over the French island of Saint Barthélemy, southeast of Saint Martin. Describing the extent of the destruction, one local compared it to "a bomb that burned all vegetation," while another said that it were as if the hurricane had effectively "erased the island from the map".[169] Violent seas swept away entire coastal establishments, with one hotel being stripped of all but its foundation.[170] Streets in the capital of Gustavia were turned into rushing rivers, which carried away vehicles and pieces of furniture. The island's fire station was inundated with up to 6.4 ft (2.0 m) of flood waters.[170][171] With scores of homes and much of the infrastructure destroyed, the majority of the island's population was left stranded and without water, electricity or phone service.[169] The associated economic losses could exceed $480 million according to CEDIM's analysts.[134]

text: Preliminary assessments from the French government indicate that Hurricane Irma caused a combined €1.2 billion ($1.44 billion) in insured losses across the French territories of Saint-Martin and Saint Barts. This total covered private property such as homes, vehicles and businesses (including lost revenue);[172] the extent of the damage to infrastructural and public facilities remains undetermined. Nonetheless, this made Irma one of the costliest natural disasters to hit the French Republic in 50 years.[172]

text: Anguilla

text: The British Overseas Territory of Anguilla saw the eye of the storm pass over it on September 6. Many homes and schools were destroyed, and the island's only hospital was badly damaged.[173] The devastation was particularly severe in East End, where the winds uprooted scores of trees and power poles and demolished a number of houses. In The Valley, the island's capital, the hurricane blew out the windows of government buildings. Rough seas inflicted heavy damage upon several bays and harbors, and a seaside restaurant was completely eradicated.[174] About 90% of roads were left impassable.[162] The island's air traffic control tower was damaged, exacerbating the already poor communication with the island.[175] One death was reported on the island.[173] According to CEDIM, Anguilla's economy could suffer at least $190 million in losses from the hurricane.[134]

text: Rest of the Lesser Antilles

text: Large swells ahead of Irma washed ashore debris and sea life in Castries, Saint Lucia, blocking some roads. Seaside roads were inundated with water.[176] One surfer was killed amid rough surf in Barbados after hitting a reef and breaking his neck. Trees were also destroyed.[177] The hurricane's effects, such as violent seas and rattling trees, were intense enough to be detected by seismographs in Guadeloupe. Several houses were damaged.[178] Around 8,000 households and a water supply network on that island lost power during the storm, leaving several communes in the dark without running water. Overall damage was limited to external parts of houses and trees that were blown onto roads and three unmanned ships wrecked by rough seas.[43]

text: Saint Kitts and Nevis endured similar conditions to other islands. Blustery rainstorms triggered scattered power outages and disabled the island's water system, but per the International Red Cross, the islands were spared the level of destruction seen elsewhere.[179] Still, Prime Minister Timothy Harris stated that property and infrastructure had sustained "significant damage."[56] The Dutch territories of Saba and Sint Eustatius were also struck by the hurricane's winds, resulting in infrastructural damage, water shortages and telecommunication outages.[174][180] Several houses were left uninhabitable. On Saba, the hurricane also defoliated trees and injured a few people.[174][180] CEDIM's analysts expect economic losses of $20–65 million for the two islands.[134]

text: British Virgin Islands

text: Damage in the British Virgin Islands was extensive. Numerous buildings and roads were destroyed on the island of Tortola, which bore the brunt of the hurricane's core.[182] Four people were confirmed dead.[183] Along Cane Garden Bay, the storm surge submerged several seaside bars and a gas station. Satellite images revealed many of the island's residential zones had been left in ruins.[174] The hurricane passed over Necker Island, also causing severe damage and destroying the mansion of Richard Branson.[184]

text: Most homes and businesses were destroyed on the island of Jost Van Dyke, the smallest of the B.V.I.'s four main islands.[185] The Governor, Gus Jaspert, who had only been sworn into office 13 days previously, declared a state of emergency - the first time this has ever happened in the Territory.[186] After the storm, authorities estimated that it would take 6 months to restore public electricity to the entire country.[187]

text: U.S. Virgin Islands

text: Irma's effects in the U.S. Virgin Islands were most profound on Saint Thomas, where at least 12 inches (305 mm) of rain fell, and on Saint John. Saint Thomas island suffered widespread structural damage, including to its police station and airport. Patients from the fourth and third floors of Charlotte Amalie's hospital had to be relocated to lower floors due to flooding from roof leaks. Three deaths were attributed to Irma on the island. On nearby Saint Croix, there were communication issues and some damage to the infrastructure.[174] Saint John lost access to ferry and cargo services, along with access to the local airport. Due to its normal reliance on electricity from Saint Thomas, the island was left without power.[188][189][190][191]

text: Puerto Rico

text: Waves in Puerto Rico reached 30 feet (9.1 m) in height;[56] a 111 miles (179 km) per hour gust was measured on Culebra.[192] Two people died due to rainstorms ahead of the hurricane: one man died in Orocovis after falling off his ladder while repairing his roof; another man on the coast in Capitanejo died after being struck by lightning. Three nearby fishermen were burned by the same lightning strike, but survived. Two other people died during the hurricane: a woman died while being evacuated from her house in a wheelchair and fell from the same hitting her head; another person died in a car accident in Canóvanas.[193] In rural Loíza, 79 homes were destroyed.[194] More than a million residents lost power due to damages caused by the storm, according to former Puerto Rican Governor Alejandro García Padilla.[195] Governor Ricardo Rosselló declared the islands of Culebra and Vieques to be disaster areas.[56]

text: Hispaniola

text: Although spared a direct hit, both the Dominican Republic and Haiti were affected by high winds and heavy rains. A bridge over the Dajabón River connecting the two countries was broken.[196]

text: In the Dominican Republic, the fishing community of Nagua sustained damage from waves that destroyed homes. 55,000 soldiers were deployed to affected areas to help with the clean-up efforts.[54] By the evening of September 7, the government had counted 2,721 damaged homes.[55]

text: In Haiti, flooding one meter deep sat in residential neighborhoods in places like Cap-Haïtien, Ouanaminthe, and Gonaives.[196] Mudslides, destroyed homes, flooded crops, and infrastructure damage were reported in the northern part of the country.[55] The total expanse of the flooding stretched from Môle-Saint-Nicolas in the west to the eastern border with the Dominican Republic.[197]

text: Turks and Caicos Islands

text: On the evening of September 7, at 7:30 pm AST (23:30 UTC), Hurricane Irma reached the Turks and Caicos Islands. While the eye passed just south of the main islands, crossing over South Caicos and the Ambergris Cays, the most powerful winds on the northern side of the eye swept all of the islands for more than two hours. Communications infrastructure was destroyed.[198][199][200]

text: On September 8, Minister of Infrastructure Goldray Ewing confirmed that damage to Providenciales was extensive, with the northwestern neighborhood of Blue Hill being "gone." He estimated that damage on Providenciales alone would total US$500 million.[201] The hospital in the capital, Cockburn Town, was damaged, but no deaths or injuries have been reported as of yet.[202] On South Caicos, 75% of roofs were lost.[200]

text: The Bahamas

text: In the Bahamas, the eye of the storm passed over Duncan Town, the major settlement of the Ragged Islands chain, on September 8. It also passed "almost directly over" Inagua and South Acklins, according to the Bahamas Department of Meteorology.[203]

text: Damages were largely confined to the southern islands starting the morning of September 8. On Mayaguana and Great Inagua, downed power lines knocked out communications.[204] On Great Inagua, 70% of homes sustained roof damage, and the island's school lost its roof entirely. The Morton Salt Company's signature production facility, one of the major employers in the country, experienced millions of dollars in damages.[205] The Acklins settlement of Salina Point was cut off from the rest of the island by flooding, while Crooked Island had widespread roof damage.[63] In the northern Bahamas, the worst property damage came on September 10 as the outer bands of the system produced tornadic activity on Grand Bahama and Bimini.[206][207]

text: Cuba

text:
Costliest Cuban hurricanes

Hurricane
Season
Damage

Ike
2008
7009730000000000000♠$7.3 billion
[209]

Matthew
2016
7009258000000000000♠$2.58 billion
[210]

Irma
2017
7009220000000000000♠$2.2 billion
[211]

Gustav
2008
7009210000000000000♠$2.1 billion
[209]

Michelle
2001
7009200000000000000♠$2 billion
[212]

Sandy
2012
7009200000000000000♠$2 billion
[213]

Dennis
2005
7009150000000000000♠$1.5 billion
[214]

Ivan
2004
7009120000000000000♠$1.2 billion
[215]

Charley
2004
7008923000000000000♠$923 million
[215]

text: Late on September 8, Irma reintensified into a Category 5 hurricane and made landfall on the Camagüey Archipelago off the northern coast of Cuba, with maximum sustained winds of 160 mph (260 km/h).[216][217]

text: The weather station at Esmeralda, Camagüey was damaged, with the wind gauge destroyed.[102] According to The New York Times, northern Cuba experienced "waves more than 16 feet high, and damage to hospitals, factories and warehouses."[63]

text: By late morning on September 9, Irma had weakened to Category 3 due to the Cuban topography but continued to cause significant damage. The tourist areas of Cayo Coco, Cayo Guillermo and Cayo Santa María and the nearby town of Caibarién received the brunt of the storm, with waves rolling through town and the characteristic one-story homes completely flooded. Flooding worsened as the hurricane moved west, pushing the storm surge along to the regions around Havana.[218] By the afternoon, limited flooding was occurring in Havana, including around the Malecón. Widespread destruction of housing was reported in the provinces of Ciego de Ávila and Villa Clara.[63] In the city of Santa Clara, 39 buildings collapsed.[219] Overall, Irma is estimated to have caused at least $2.2 billion (2017 USD) in damage and at least 10 deaths across the country.[139]

text: Hurricane Irma directly impacted a major colony of American flamingos on Cuba's northern Cayo Coco.[156] Early reports from Diario de Cuba indicated that several hundred flamingos had been killed by the storm, though other estimates ranged as high as several thousand birds.[156][220]

text: Mainland United States

text: Preliminary estimates place the amount of damage that Hurricane Irma caused in the US at a minimum of $50 billion.[148] Hurricane Irma affected multiple states in the South, notably Florida. Except for the Florida Keys, the total damage it caused was not as great as government officials and forecasters had warned. The Florida Keys suffered the worst of the damage in the US. After surveying the aftermath of Irma, Florida governor Rick Scott said "I thought we would see more damage" [on the mainland] but said "he witnessed devastation in the Keys".[222] Hurricane Irma weakened after making landfall in Cuba, but strengthened back into a Category 4 prior to hitting the Keys. President Donald Trump commented on Twitter that the devastation in some places was "far greater than anyone thought".[223]

text: At least 90 people died throughout the United States in relation to Hurricane Irma: 82 in Florida, 5 in South Carolina, and 3 in Georgia.

text: Florida

text: Throughout Florida, at least 82 people died in storm-related incidents. The majority of deaths occurred from drowning, trauma, and carbon monoxide poisoning.[224][225] At least 12 people died throughout the Florida Keys.[226] One death occurred during preparations when a man fell off a ladder, while installing hurricane shutters in Davie.[227] Another death occurred in a traffic accident in tropical storm force winds in Monroe County.[228] A man in Coconut Grove died while riding out the storm on his houseboat.[229] Three deaths occurred in Polk County.[230] In the hurricane's aftermath, lack of power and possible criminal negligence led to 14 deaths at The Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills, a Hollywood nursing home. The patients died from sweltering heat worsened by the lack of air conditioning.[225]

text: After crossing the Straits of Florida and being upgraded to a Category 4 hurricane, initial landfall took place at Cudjoe Key at 9:10 am. EDT on September 10,[231][232] where an estimated 10 ft (3 m) storm surge occurred during the afternoon.[233] In the Keys, the hurricane caused major damage to buildings, trailer parks, boats, roads, the electricity supply, mobile phone coverage, internet access, sanitation, the water supply and the fuel supply. Key West, Sugarloaf Key, Summerland Key, Ramrod Key, Little Torch Key, Big Pine Key and Marathon were also flooded by storm surge,[234][235][236][237][238] and tornadoes were reported at Sugarloaf Key.[239]

text: A second landfall was made, as a Category 3 hurricane, at Marco Island at 3:35 pm. EDT the same day.[240] A 7 ft (2.1 m) storm surge occurred in Naples, which Irma passed over as a Category 2 hurricane after being downgraded at 5 pm. EDT.[241][242][243] Part of Tampa Bay (at Hillsborough Bay) was drained in a reverse storm surge caused by strong offshore winds, prior to the arrival of the eye of the hurricane.[244] Sarasota Bay was also drained, resulting in the stranding of two manatees which were then rescued.[245][246] The hurricane was downgraded to Category 1 intensity, prior to reaching Tampa.[247]

text: Away from the path of the eye, a wind gust of 109 mph (175 km/h) was recorded in Pembroke Pines. In Miami, storm surge inundated Brickell Avenue with waist-deep water,[248] and two high-rise tower cranes collapsed.[249] A further construction crane collapsed in Fort Lauderdale.[250] There were sporadic reports of looting and burglaries at several Miami Metro area businesses with the theft of non-essential items such as sports apparel and athletic shoes during the height of the storm.[251][252] In Jacksonville, flooding surpassed the record set by Hurricane Dora in 1964.[253]

text: At 1:00 pm. EDT, on September 10, almost 730,000 customers were without power in Miami-Dade County alone, with almost 500,000 without power in Broward County, over 225,000 out in Palm Beach County, and in total approximately 1,572,000 customers were without power across the state.[254] As of 6:41 pm. EDT on September 10 over 2.6 million homes in Florida were without power.[255] Air traffic was reduced; at one point on September 10, there were no airliners over Florida.[256]

text: In the days after the hurricane, due to the heavy rainfall, numerous rivers had flooded their surrounding land, including residential areas.[257] Public health risks, such as diarrheal infections and mosquito-borne illnesses, remain from the flooding that resulted in the aftermath of the hurricane. A large concern from flooding is contamination because people become exposed to dirty floodwaters and the potential for contaminated water to get into the local water supply is significant. One example of an illness that can get into the water supply is leptospirosis, which is caused by rat urine being in the floodwaters. If people are exposed to leptospirosis and do not get treatment, it can cause kidney damage, meningitis, and liver failure. Noroviruses and other infections are also a risk.[258]

text: Other states

text: Three deaths were reported in Georgia due to falling trees and debris, along with widespread wind damage and power outages throughout the state primarily due to fallen trees.[259] On Tybee Island, the storm surge caused extensive flooding.[260]

text: In Charleston, South Carolina, the third highest storm surge on record was recorded, reaching a height of approximately 10 ft (3 m).[261] By of September 12, almost 100,000 had lost power in Upstate South Carolina.[262] Five people died in storm-related incidents across South Carolina, all from indirect incidents.[263]

text: Light damage occurred in other areas, including Tennessee.[264] About 75,000 customers in North Carolina lost power due to Irma.[265]

text: Aftermath

text: In the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Irma's path through the West Indies and Caribbean, the devastation to roads, harbors and airports significantly impeded the transportation and distribution of relief supplies. Foreign countries moved to provide much of the initial aid. The British, Dutch, French, and United States governments sent warships and planes with supplies and manpower to the region.[54][266] International leaders, including Dutch King Willem-Alexander and French President Emmanuel Macron, quickly moved to visit affected territories.[267][268]

text: Some of the affected countries and territories also offered assistance to each other. Cuba, which sustained extensive damage from the storm, sent 750 health workers to Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, The Bahamas, Dominica, and Haiti.[269] Government officials and members of the public in Puerto Rico delivered assistance and evacuated people stranded on other islands. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services granted special 30-day humanitarian visas for British Virgin Islanders to stay in Puerto Rico.[270] Hundreds of people stranded on Saint Martin were flown to the Dominican Republic on humanitarian grounds.[271]

text: Antigua and Barbuda

text: In response to Hurricane Jose's approach, the Government of Antigua and Barbuda issued a mandatory evacuation on September 9 for any remaining residents on Barbuda. A Miami cargo plane landed on Antigua later that day, carrying over 60 tons (120,000 lbs) of relief supplies for the displaced storm victims—including bottled water, canned food and power generators.[272]

text: British Overseas Territories

text: RFA Mounts Bay stationed itself near Anguilla and provided support and relief work to the island with its helicopters and 40 marines and army engineers.[173] The ship delivered 6 tonnes of emergency aid to Anguilla and army engineers repaired a fuel leak at Anguilla's main petrol dump, restored power to the island's hospital and provided shelters for those left homeless by the hurricane.[273][274] The ship arrived in the British Virgin Islands on September 8, 2017 to provide emergency relief to the islands, including providing shelters, food and water.[273] HMS Ocean was diverted from the Mediterranean to provide relief from Gibraltar to the affected British Overseas Territories of Anguilla, British Virgin Islands and Turks and Caicos on September 7, 2017,[275] and aid is also being supplied by the Department for International Development from their disaster response centre at Kemble Airfield. As part of a £32 million operation named Operation Ruman, nearly 500 UK military personnel with emergency relief were dispatched from RAF Brize Norton.[276] This included the first deployment of No. 38 Expeditionary Air Wing with 3 RAF aircraft; 2 Airbus A400M Atlas and 1 C130J hercules to support relief efforts.

text: The British government also drafted 2 members of the UK police calibre into the region on September 10, 2017 and 53 police officers were drafted from RAF Brize Norton to the affected British Overseas Territories on September 15, 2017 to help maintain order.[277][278] UK politicians, including the chairs of the foreign affairs and development select committees, criticized both the government's preparations for the storm and its response as inadequate.[279][280]

text: By September 12, 2017, the Department for International Development had delivered more than 40 tonnes of aid into the region, including into Turks and Caicos, and 1,000 UK military troops were deployed in the region as part of relief efforts.[274] The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Theresa May, pledged an additional £25 million worth of funding as part of relief efforts in the region on September 13, 2017 and the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, Boris Johnson, said that a further 250 UK military personnel would be deployed into the area within the next few days.[281] Anguilla's Chief Minister, Victor Banks, praised the British government's response to the storm and said that Boris Johnson's visit to the island "sends a very positive signal to Anguillans that the British are serious about their response to this very severe hurricane", but went on to say that the current financial commitment from the UK was not substantial enough.[281][282]

text: By September 15, 2017, the United Kingdom had over 70 military personnel and 4 police officers in Anguilla and had delivered 15 tonnes of aid to the island.[283] In the British Virgin Islands, Royal Marines had cleared the airfield so that it was operational for the delivery of aid into the islands, with more than 200 British military personnel and 54 UK police officers on the ground and 8 tonnes of aid delivered to the islands.[283] 120 British military personnel were on the ground in Turks and Caicos, and over 150 shelter kits and 720 liters of water were delivered to the islands on September 15.[283]

text: Amendments to international aid rules by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (or OECD) allowed for the UK government to provide access to £13 billion worth of aid to the affected British Overseas Territories, through the UK's Official Development Assistance (ODA) by November 2017.[284]

text: The Bahamas

text: By the afternoon of September 9, Bahamas Power and Light Company had dispatched crews across the archipelago to repair infrastructure damage. The southernmost islands, which were most severely affected by Irma's eye, remained largely inaccessible for days.[285] Assessments showed that 15% of the national telecommunications network had been affected, with at least one tower destroyed.[286] Bahamasair resumed a limited domestic schedule on September 10, with international flights still cancelled due to existing and anticipated destruction at other destinations.[287]

text: The worst devastation occurred on Ragged Island, over which Irma's eye had directly passed. After days of the National Emergency Management Agency not being able to physically reach the island, officials were finally able to inspect it; they promptly declared it uninhabitable.[288][289] Prime Minister Hubert Minnis said that it was the worst disaster area he or his officials had ever seen, and that all remaining residents would need to leave, potentially permanently.[288][290] Business leaders and other officials called for a new long-term development model to shift the population away from such sparsely-settled islands.[291]

text: On Grand Bahama and Bimini, where tornadoes associated with Irma touched down on September 10, more than 100 people were left displaced. Infrastructure damage included docks, parks, and the power system.[207]

text: Aside from tangible asset losses, Irma brought significant economic damages. International freight shipping was projected to be offline for a week, and costs for rebuilding supplies were inflated due to demand in the U.S.[292]

text: Cuba

text: Swollen rivers contributed to worsening flooding in the days after the storm system left, resulting in additional evacuations. Officials resorted to using inflatable rafts to access affected areas. The national electrical infrastructure was said to be extensively damaged.[219]

text: Hispaniola

text: In the Dominican Republic, flooding worsened following Irma's departure, leading the number of displaced persons to increase to more than 24,000 by September 8. President Danilo Medina ordered further evacuations due to at-risk dams, while the government banned swimming in rivers and ordered boats kept in port.[293] More than 422,000 people were left without water due to 28 aqueducts being damaged.[294]

text: In Haiti, officials stated that losses were greater than they could have been since people largely did not heed early preparation and evacuation warnings.[55] At least 5,000 homes were flooded. One man died trying to cross a flooded river; another went missing and 17 were injured.[295] The trash- and waste-contaminated floodwaters in places like Cap-Haïtien, Ouanaminthe, and Gonaives led to fears of cholera outbreaks.[196] Flooding continued to worsen days after the storm, as runoff from the mountains swelled rivers in low-lying farming communities. United Nations peacekeepers from Brazil were able to gain access to the flooded northwest region to provide urgent aid, but non-governmental organizations and Haitian economists warned that the estimated 30,000 victims would need longer-term assistance as well. Prime Minister Jack Guy Lafontant appointed a government commission to address Irma's effects, with Action Against Hunger in charge of humanitarian coordination.[197]

text: Puerto Rico

text: By September 9, more than one million Puerto Ricans were still without power, tens of thousands were without water, and several thousand were still in shelters. Hospitals were operating on generator power. The government was struggling to establish contact with the islands of Culebra and Vieques.[56]

text: By September 10, the main island had recovered enough to serve as a refuge for people stranded on other islands, including 1,200 tourists from Saint Martin and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Airlifts had brought more than 50 patients to Puerto Rico.[270]

text: Saint Martin

text: Damage to Sint Maarten's harbour and to Princess Juliana International Airport left the Dutch part of Saint Martin unreachable, although the smaller Grand Case-Espérance Airport on the French side could be reopened by September 7 for supply aid by helicopter and airplane.[296] The French armed forces based in Guadeloupe and French Guyana flew equipment and troops on board a CASA/IPTN CN-235.

text: The following day, the Dutch military was able to airlift dialysis patients off the island while also dropping leaflets to warn islanders about the rapidly approaching Hurricane Jose.[102] Although the airport was closed, 435 students and faculty of the American University of the Caribbean were evacuated by the U.S. military.[297] On September 10, Dutch King Willem-Alexander departed for the region, with intentions to visit Sint Maarten and other affected Dutch territories and commonwealth members.[267]

text: French President Emmanuel Macron followed this announcement by stating his intentions to visit the French part of the island on September 12 in order to bring aid supplies. In response to criticism of the French handling of the disaster, 1,000 troops, police, and other emergency workers were sent to Saint Martin and Saint Barthélemy.[268]

text: On both sides of Saint Martin, desperate conditions combined with food and water shortages in Irma's aftermath led to reports of violence, scavenging, and theft. In response, the French government increased its troop deployment to 2,200 and the Dutch government sent more than 600 military and police personnel.[279][298]

text: French Overseas Departments

text: The day after the hurricane hit Saint Barthelemy the French armed forces based in Guadeloupe and French Guyana flew equipment and troops into the reopened Grand Case-Espérance Airport. On September 7 and 9, equipment and personnel were flown from France to Guadeloupe and Martinique.[299]

text: Florida

text: On September 11, Florida Governor Rick Scott conducted an aerial tour to survey the damage to the Keys. The Overseas Highway remained closed while authorities assessed the integrity of the 42 bridges along the route.[300] Residents returning to the Keys were faced with a police roadblock, to the south of Florida City.[301][302] USS Iwo Jima, USS New York and aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln were sent to the Keys area to aid with the recovery.[303]

text: On the morning of September 12, some residents were allowed to return into the Keys as far as Islamorada. Although road damage blocked entry any further than Islamorada, bridges had been inspected and found safe to Sugarloaf Key.[304] FEMA's initial estimate indicated that 25% of buildings in the Keys were destroyed, 65% were significantly damaged, and 90% of houses sustained "some damage".[305][306][307] By the evening, the Overseas Highway had been repaired and the bridges inspected as safe for first responders to travel to Key West.[308] On September 16, residents were free to return to Marathon.[309] Residents were allowed to return to Key West the following day, although the Keys remained closed to tourists and a checkpoint remained in place in Florida City.[310]

text: By September 12, almost 4.4 million homes and businesses in Florida were without power, according to state officials.[146] Due mainly to the widespread loss of power, cell phone service was also significantly impacted after battery backup power for cell phone towers ran out and backup generators ran out of fuel.[311][312][313] In an impact report by the FCC, as of 11 AM EDT on September 12, 89 of 108 (82%) cell phone towers were non-functioning in Monroe County (Florida Keys), 154 of 212 (73%) were non-functioning in Collier County (Naples), 36 of 46 (78%) were non-functioning in Hendry County, and an additional six counties had 41-60% of cell phone towers not functioning, including Lee County (Ft. Myers) and Miami-Dade County.[314]

text: From September 12, NOAA released map-format aerial reconnaissance image data along the length of the Keys, and the coast around Naples and Fort Myers.[315][316][317]

text: Following Irma's passage, a 15 ft (4.6 m) hand-carved wooden canoe was discovered on the banks of the Indian River and could be several hundred years old. The state has removed the canoe for examination and safe keeping.[318]

text: Due to Irma's and Hurricane Harvey's impact in Florida and Texas, the U.S. employment declined in September for the first time since September 2010. The leisure and hospitality industries were especially hard hit, losing 111,000 jobs in the month of September.[319]

text: U.S. Virgin Islands

text: In the U.S. Virgin Islands, residents and tourists alike were described as being in a state of traumatic shock.[219] By September 7, the USS Wasp amphibious assault ship had arrived in the U.S. Virgin Islands to provide supplies, damage assessment, and evacuation assistance. Four additional warships, some of which had already been on their way to Texas to assist with Hurricane Harvey relief, were redirected to the region.[266] The National Guard was delayed in reaching Saint John due to the number of overturned boats left in the harbor.[320]

text: At a September 10 news conference, Governor Kenneth Mapp described Irma as a "horrific disaster" for which "[t]here will be no restorations or solutions in days or weeks." The Federal Emergency Management Agency airlifted in goods for residents, who were subjected to a curfew. Norwegian Cruise Lines and Royal Caribbean Cruise Line agreed to transport tourists to Florida, contingent upon port availability following the state's own experience with Irma.[321]

text: On Saint John, which was described by The Washington Post as "perhaps the site of Irma's worst devastation on American soil," it took six days for an active-theater disaster zone to be established, leading to criticism of the U.S. government response. The National Guard was brought in to maintain order, while the Coast Guard brought evacuees to cruise ships bound for San Juan and Miami.[322]

text: Records

text:
Most intense landfalling hurricanes in the Contiguous United States
Intensity is measured solely by central pressure

Rank
Hurricane
Season
Landfall pressure

1
"Labor Day"
1935
892 mbar (hPa)

2
Camille
1969
900 mbar (hPa)

3
Katrina
2005
920 mbar (hPa)

4
Andrew
1992
922 mbar (hPa)

5
"Indianola"
1886
925 mbar (hPa)

6
"Florida Keys"
1919
927 mbar (hPa)

7
"Okeechobee"
1928
929 mbar (hPa)

Irma
2017
929 mbar (hPa)

9
"Great Miami"
1926
930 mbar (hPa)

Donna
1960
930 mbar (hPa)

Source: HURDAT,[323] Hurricane
Research Division[324]

text: Irma set multiple records for intensity, especially at easterly longitudes, time spent at such an intensity, and its intensity at landfall. When Irma reached Category 5 intensity with winds of 175 mph (280 km/h) at 11:45 UTC on September 5 at 57.7°W,[21] it became the easternmost Atlantic hurricane of this strength on record, surpassing Hurricane David of 1979.[325] By 00:15 UTC on September 6, Irma reached peak intensity with 185 mph (295 km/h) winds and a minimum pressure of 914 mbar (914 hPa; 27.0 inHg). This ties it as the second-strongest Atlantic hurricane by wind speed, surpassed only by Allen of 1980 which reached wind speeds of 190 mph (305 km/h). Irma sustained these 185 mph (295 km/h) winds for 37 hours, becoming the only tropical cyclone worldwide to have had winds that speed for that long, breaking the previous record of 24 hours set by Typhoon Haiyan of 2013.[326] Only four other Atlantic hurricanes have been recorded with wind speeds of 185 mph (295 km/h) or higher: Wilma of 2005, the 1935 Labor Day hurricane, Hurricane Allen of 1980, and Hurricane Gilbert of 1988.[327] Upon reaching peak intensity, Irma also became the strongest hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic Ocean outside the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico,[328] as well as the strongest Atlantic hurricane since Wilma in terms of maximum sustained winds, and the most intense in terms of pressure since Dean in 2007.[329] In addition, Irma achieved one of the longest durations of Category 5 strength winds,[330] and the third-highest accumulated cyclone energy (ACE) index for a tropical cyclone in the Atlantic basin, with a value of 66.6 units. Only the 1899 San Ciriaco hurricane and Hurricane Ivan in 2004 achieved higher values.[331][332]

text: On September 6, Irma made landfall on the islands of Barbuda, Saint Martin, Ginger Island, and Tortola at peak strength. This made Irma the second-strongest tropical cyclone to make landfall globally – in terms of sustained winds – along with the 1935 Labor Day hurricane and Typhoon Joan of 1959, trailing only typhoons Haiyan of 2013 and Meranti of 2016, which bore winds of 190 mph (305 km/h) at landfall. Irma is tied with the 1935 Labor Day hurricane as the strongest landfalling cyclone on record in the Atlantic basin, and is the first hurricane to make landfall anywhere in the Atlantic at Category 5 status since Felix in 2007.[333] Irma is the first recorded Category 5 hurricane to affect the northern Leeward Islands, and was one of the worst storms to hit the region on record, along with Hurricane Donna in 1960 and Hurricane Luis in 1995. In addition, Irma was only the second hurricane on record to make landfall in Cuba at Category 5 intensity, with the other being a hurricane in 1924.[329]

text: Irma made landfall in the Florida Keys with winds of 130 mph (215 km/h) and a pressure of 929 mbar (hPa; 27.43 inHg), making it the strongest hurricane to strike Florida in terms of windspeed since Charley in 2004, and the most intense to strike the state in terms of barometric pressure since Andrew in 1992. In the span of two weeks, two Category 4 hurricanes—Harvey and Irma—struck the continental United States, the first time on record two Atlantic tropical cyclones of such strength made landfall on the country in the same hurricane season.[334][335] This also marked only the third occurrence of two consecutive Atlantic storms making landfall in the United States as major hurricanes. The other two instances were the Great Charleston/Cheniere Caminada hurricanes in 1893, and Hurricanes Ivan/Jeanne in 2004.[331]


document_title: American Dream

question_text: where did the phrase american dream come from

root

text: American Dream

text: History

text: The meaning of the "American Dream" has changed over the course of history, and includes both personal components (such as home ownership and upward mobility) and a global vision. Historically the Dream originated in the mystique regarding frontier life. As the Governor of Virginia noted in 1774, the Americans "for ever imagine the Lands further off are still better than those upon which they are already settled". He added that, "if they attained Paradise, they would move on if they heard of a better place farther west".[3]

tag: p

text: 19th century

text: In the 19th century, many well-educated Germans fled the failed 1848 revolution. They welcomed the political freedoms in the New World, and the lack of a hierarchical or aristocratic society that determined the ceiling for individual aspirations. One of them explained:

text: The German emigrant comes into a country free from the despotism, privileged orders and monopolies, intolerable taxes, and constraints in matters of belief and conscience. Everyone can travel and settle wherever he pleases. No passport is demanded, no police mingles in his affairs or hinders his movements ... Fidelity and merit are the only sources of honor here. The rich stand on the same footing as the poor; the scholar is not a mug above the most humble mechanics; no German ought to be ashamed to pursue any occupation ... [In America] wealth and possession of real estate confer not the least political right on its owner above what the poorest citizen has. Nor are there nobility, privileged orders, or standing armies to weaken the physical and moral power of the people, nor are there swarms of public functionaries to devour in idleness credit for. Above all, there are no princes and corrupt courts representing the so-called divine 'right of birth.' In such a country the talents, energy and perseverance of a person ... have far greater opportunity to display than in monarchies.[4]

text: The discovery of gold in California in 1849 brought in a hundred thousand men looking for their fortune overnight—and a few did find it. Thus was born the California Dream of instant success. Historian H. W. Brands noted that in the years after the Gold Rush, the California Dream spread across the nation:

text: The old American Dream ... was the dream of the Puritans, of Benjamin Franklin's "Poor Richard"... of men and women content to accumulate their modest fortunes a little at a time, year by year by year. The new dream was the dream of instant wealth, won in a twinkling by audacity and good luck. [This] golden dream ... became a prominent part of the American psyche only after Sutter's Mill."[5]

text: Historian Frederick Jackson Turner in 1893 advanced the Frontier Thesis, under which American democracy and the American Dream were formed by the American frontier. He stressed the process—the moving frontier line—and the impact it had on pioneers going through the process. He also stressed results; especially that American democracy was the primary result, along with egalitarianism, a lack of interest in high culture, and violence. "American democracy was born of no theorist's dream; it was not carried in the Susan Constant to Virginia, nor in the Mayflower to Plymouth. It came out of the American forest, and it gained new strength each time it touched a new frontier," said Turner.[6] In the thesis, the American frontier established liberty by releasing Americans from European mindsets and eroding old, dysfunctional customs. The frontier had no need for standing armies, established churches, aristocrats or nobles, nor for landed gentry who controlled most of the land and charged heavy rents. Frontier land was free for the taking. Turner first announced his thesis in a paper entitled "The Significance of the Frontier in American History", delivered to the American Historical Association in 1893 in Chicago. He won wide acclaim among historians and intellectuals. Turner elaborated on the theme in his advanced history lectures and in a series of essays published over the next 25 years, published along with his initial paper as The Frontier in American History.[7] Turner's emphasis on the importance of the frontier in shaping American character influenced the interpretation found in thousands of scholarly histories. By the time Turner died in 1932, 60% of the leading history departments in the U.S. were teaching courses in frontier history along Turnerian lines.[8]

text: 20th century

text: Freelance writer James Truslow Adams popularized the phrase "American Dream" in his 1931 book Epic of America:

text: But there has been also the American dream, that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for every man, with opportunity for each according to his ability or achievement. It is a difficult dream for the European upper classes to interpret adequately, and too many of us ourselves have grown weary and mistrustful of it. It is not a dream of motor cars and high wages merely, but a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position... The American dream, that has lured tens of millions of all nations to our shores in the past century has not been a dream of merely material plenty, though that has doubtlessly counted heavily. It has been much more than that. It has been a dream of being able to grow to fullest development as man and woman, unhampered by the barriers which had slowly been erected in the older civilizations, unrepressed by social orders which had developed for the benefit of classes rather than for the simple human being of any and every class.[1]

text: Martin Luther King, Jr., in his "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" (1963) rooted the civil rights movement in the African-American quest for the American Dream:[9]

text: We will win our freedom because the sacred heritage of our nation and the eternal will of God are embodied in our echoing demands ... when these disinherited children of God sat down at lunch counters they were in reality standing up for what is best in the American dream and for the most sacred values in our Judeo-Christian heritage, thereby bringing our nation back to those great wells of democracy which were dug deep by the founding fathers in their formulation of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.

text: Literature

text: The concept is used in popular discourse, and scholars have traced its use in American literature ranging from the Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin,[10] to Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), Willa Cather's My Ántonia,[11] F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby (1925), Theodore Dreiser's An American Tragedy (1925) and Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon (1977).[12] Other writers who used the American Dream theme include Hunter S. Thompson, Edward Albee,[13] John Steinbeck,[14] Langston Hughes[15] and Giannina Braschi.[16] The American Dream is also discussed in Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman; the play's protagonist, Willy, is on a quest for the American Dream.

text: As Huang shows, the American Dream is a recurring theme in the fiction of Asian Americans.[17][18]

text: American ideals

text: Many American authors added American Ideals to their work as a theme or other reoccurring idea, to get their point across.[19] There are many ideals that appear in American Literature such as, but not limited to, all people are equal, The United States of America is the Land of Opportunity, independence is valued, The American Dream is attainable, and everyone can succeed with hard work and determination. John Winthrop also wrote about this term called, American Exceptionalism. This ideology refers to the idea that Americans are the chosen ones, and that they are the light.[20]

text: Literary commentary

text: The American Dream has been credited with helping to build a cohesive American experience, but has also been blamed for inflated expectations.[22] Some commentators have noted that despite deep-seated belief in the egalitarian American Dream, the modern American wealth structure still perpetuates racial and class inequalities between generations.[23] One sociologist notes that advantage and disadvantage are not always connected to individual successes or failures, but often to prior position in a social group.[23]

text: Since the 1920s, numerous authors, such as Sinclair Lewis in his 1922 novel Babbitt, and F. Scott Fitzgerald, in his 1925 classic, The Great Gatsby, satirized or ridiculed materialism in the chase for the American dream. For example, Jay Gatsby's death mirrors the American Dream's demise, reflecting the pessimism of modern-day Americans.[24] The American Dream is a main theme in the book by John Steinbeck, Of Mice and Men. The two friends George and Lennie dream of their own piece of land with a ranch, so they can "live off the fatta the lan'" and just enjoy a better life. The book later shows that not everyone can achieve the American Dream, thus proving by contradiction it is not possible for all, although it is possible to achieve for a few. A lot of people follow the American Dream to achieve a greater chance of becoming rich. Some posit that the ease of achieving the American Dream changes with technological advances, availability of infrastructure and information, government regulations, state of the economy, and with the evolving cultural values of American demographics.

text: In 1949, Arthur Miller wrote Death of a Salesman, in which the American Dream is a fruitless pursuit. Similarly, in 1971 Hunter S. Thompson depicted in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey Into the Heart of the American Dream a dark psychedelic reflection of the concept—successfully illustrated only in wasted pop-culture excess.[25]

text: The novel Requiem for a Dream by Hubert Selby, Jr. is an exploration of the pursuit of American success as it turns delirious and lethal, told through the ensuing tailspin of its main characters. George Carlin famously wrote the joke "it's called the American dream because you have to be asleep to believe it".[26] Carlin pointed to "the big wealthy business interests that control things and make all the important decisions" as having a greater influence than an individual's choice.[26] Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Chris Hedges echos this sentiment in his 2012 book Days of Destruction, Days of Revolt:[27]

text: The vaunted American dream, the idea that life will get better, that progress is inevitable if we obey the rules and work hard, that material prosperity is assured, has been replaced by a hard and bitter truth. The American dream, we now know, is a lie. We will all be sacrificed. The virus of corporate abuse - the perverted belief that only corporate profit matters - has spread to outsource our jobs, cut the budgets of our schools, close our libraries, and plague our communities with foreclosures and unemployment.

text: The American Dream, and the sometimes dark response to it, has been a long-standing theme in American film.[28] Many counterculture films of the 1960s and 1970s ridiculed the traditional quest for the American Dream. For example, Easy Rider (1969), directed by Dennis Hopper, shows the characters making a pilgrimage in search of "the true America" in terms of the hippie movement, drug use, and communal lifestyles.[29]

text: Political leaders

text: Scholars have explored the American Dream theme in the careers of numerous political leaders, including Henry Kissinger,[30] Hillary Clinton,[31] Benjamin Franklin, and Abraham Lincoln.[32] The theme has been used for many local leaders as well, such as José Antonio Navarro, the Tejano leader (1795–1871), who served in the legislatures of Coahuila y Texas, the Republic of Texas, and the State of Texas.[33]

text: In 2006 U.S. Senator Barack Obama wrote a memoir, The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream. It was this interpretation of the American Dream for a young black man that helped establish his statewide and national reputations.[34][35] The exact meaning of the Dream became for at least one commentator a partisan political issue in the 2008 and 2012 elections.[36]

text: Political conflicts, to some degree, have been ameliorated by the shared values of all parties in the expectation that the American Dream will resolve many difficulties and conflicts.[37]

text: Public opinion

text: The ethos today implies an opportunity for Americans to achieve prosperity through hard work. According to The Dream, this includes the opportunity for one's children to grow up and receive a good education and career without artificial barriers. It is the opportunity to make individual choices without the prior restrictions that limited people according to their class, caste, religion, race, or ethnicity. Immigrants to the United States sponsored ethnic newspapers in their own language; the editors typically promoted the American Dream.[38] Lawrence Samuel argues:

text: For many in both the working class and the middle class, upward mobility has served as the heart and soul of the American Dream, the prospect of "betterment" and to "improve one's lot" for oneself and one's children much of what this country is all about. "Work hard, save a little, send the kids to college so they can do better than you did, and retire happily to a warmer climate" has been the script we have all been handed.[39]

text: A key element of the American Dream is promoting opportunity for one's children, Johnson interviewing parents says, "This was one of the most salient features of the interview data: parents—regardless of background—relied heavily on the American Dream to understand the possibilities for children, especially their own children".[40] Rank et al. argue, "The hopes and optimism that Americans possess pertain not only to their own lives, but to their children's lives as well. A fundamental aspect of the American Dream has always been the expectation that the next generation should do better than the previous generation."[41]

text: Hanson and Zogby (2010) report on numerous public opinion polls that since the 1980s have explored the meaning of the concept for Americans, and their expectations for its future. In these polls, a majority of Americans consistently reported that for their family, the American Dream is more about spiritual happiness than material goods. Majorities state that working hard is the most important element for getting ahead. However, an increasing minority stated that hard work and determination does not guarantee success. Most Americans predict that achieving the Dream with fair means will become increasingly difficult for future generations. They are increasingly pessimistic about the opportunity for the working class to get ahead; on the other hand, they are increasingly optimistic about the opportunities available to poor people and to new immigrants. Furthermore, most support programs make special efforts to help minorities get ahead.[42]

text: In a 2013 poll by a YouGov, 41% of responders said it is impossible for most to achieve the American Dream, while 38% said it is still possible.[43] Most Americans perceive a college education as the ticket to the American Dream.[44] Some recent observers warn that soaring student loan debt crisis and shortages of good jobs may undermine this ticket.[45] The point was illustrated in The Fallen American Dream,[46] a documentary film that details the concept of the American Dream from its historical origins to its current perception.

text: Research published in 2013 shows that the US provides, alongside the United Kingdom and Spain, the least economic mobility of any of 13 rich, democratic countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.[47][48] Prior research suggested that the United States shows roughly average levels of occupational upward mobility and shows lower rates of income mobility than comparable societies.[49][50] Blanden et al. report, "the idea of the US as 'the land of opportunity' persists; and clearly seems misplaced."[51] According to these studies, "by international standards, the United States has an unusually low level of intergenerational mobility: our parents' income is highly predictive of our incomes as adults. Intergenerational mobility in the United States is lower than in France, Germany, Sweden, Canada, Finland, Norway and Denmark. Research in 2006 found that among high-income countries for which comparable estimates are available, only the United Kingdom had a lower rate of mobility than the United States."[52] Economist Isabel Sawhill concluded that "this challenges the notion of America as the land of opportunity".[53][54][55] Several public figures and commentators, from David Frum to Richard G. Wilkinson, have noted that the American dream is better realized in Denmark, which is ranked as having the highest social mobility in the OECD.[56][57][58][59][60] In 2015, economist Joseph Stiglitz stated, "Maybe we should be calling the American Dream the Scandinavian Dream."[61]

text: In the United States, home ownership is sometimes used as a proxy for achieving the promised prosperity; ownership has been a status symbol separating the middle classes from the poor.[62]

text: Sometimes the Dream is identified with success in sports or how working class immigrants seek to join the American way of life.[63]

text: Four dreams of consumerism

text: Ownby (1999) identifies four American Dreams that the new consumer culture addressed. The first was the "Dream of Abundance" offering a cornucopia of material goods to all Americans, making them proud to be the richest society on earth. The second was the "Dream of a Democracy of Goods" whereby everyone had access to the same products regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, or class, thereby challenging the aristocratic norms of the rest of the world whereby only the rich or well-connected are granted access to luxury. The "Dream of Freedom of Choice" with its ever-expanding variety of good allowed people to fashion their own particular lifestyle. Finally, the "Dream of Novelty", in which ever-changing fashions, new models, and unexpected new products broadened the consumer experience in terms of purchasing skills and awareness of the market, and challenged the conservatism of traditional society and culture, and even politics. Ownby acknowledges that the dreams of the new consumer culture radiated out from the major cities, but notes that they quickly penetrated the most rural and most isolated areas, such as rural Mississippi. With the arrival of the model T after 1910, consumers in rural America were no longer locked into local general stores with their limited merchandise and high prices in comparison to shops in towns and cities. Ownby demonstrates that poor black Mississippians shared in the new consumer culture, both inside Mississippi, and it motivated the more ambitious to move to Memphis or Chicago.[64][65]

text: Other parts of the world

text: The aspirations of the "American Dream" in the broad sense of upward mobility has been systematically spread to other nations since the 1890s as American missionaries and businessmen consciously sought to spread the Dream, says Rosenberg. Looking at American business, religious missionaries, philanthropies, Hollywood, labor unions and Washington agencies, she says they saw their mission not in catering to foreign elites but instead reaching the world's masses in democratic fashion. "They linked mass production, mass marketing, and technological improvement to an enlightened democratic spirit ... In the emerging litany of the American dream what historian Daniel Boorstin later termed a "democracy of things" would disprove both Malthus's predictions of scarcity and Marx's of class conflict." It was, she says "a vision of global social progress."[66] Rosenberg calls the overseas version of the American Dream "liberal-developmentalism" and identified five critical components:

text: (1) belief that other nations could and should replicate America's own developmental experience; (2) faith in private free enterprise; (3) support for free or open access for trade and investment; (4) promotion of free flow of information and culture; and (5) growing acceptance of [U.S.] governmental activity to protect private enterprise and to stimulate and regulate American participation in international economic and cultural exchange.[67]

text: Knights and McCabe argued American management gurus have taken the lead in exporting the ideas: "By the latter half of the twentieth century they were truly global and through them the American Dream continues to be transmitted, repackaged and sold by an infantry of consultants and academics backed up by an artillery of books and videos".[68]

text: After World War II

text: In West Germany after World War II, says Pommerin, "the most intense motive was the longing for a better life, more or less identical with the American dream, which also became a German dream".[69] Cassamagnaghi argues that to women in Italy after 1945, films and magazine stories about American life offered an "American dream." New York City especially represented a sort of utopia where every sort of dream and desire could become true. Italian women saw a model for their own emancipation from second class status in their patriarchal society.[70]

text: Britain

text: The American dream regarding home ownership had little resonance before the 1980s.[71] In the 1980s, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher worked to create a similar dream, by selling public-housing units to their tenants. Her Conservative party called for more home ownership: "HOMES OF OUR OWN: To most people ownership means first and foremost a home of their own ... We should like in time to improve on existing legislation with a realistic grants scheme to assist first-time buyers of cheaper homes."[72] Guest calls this Thatcher's approach to the American Dream.[73] Knights and McCabe argue that, "a reflection and reinforcement of the American Dream has been the emphasis on individualism as extolled by Margaret Thatcher and epitomized by the 'enterprise' culture."[74]

text: Russia

text: Since the fall of Communism in the Soviet Union in 1991, the American Dream has fascinated Russians.[75] The first post-Communist leader Boris Yeltsin embraced the "American way" and teamed up with Harvard University free market economists Jeffrey Sachs and Robert Allison to give Russia economic shock therapy in the 1990s. The newly independent Russian media idealized America and endorsed shock therapy for the economy.[76] In 2008 Russian President Dmitry Medvedev lamented the fact that 77% of Russia's 142 million people live "cooped up" in apartment buildings. In 2010 his administration announced a plan for widespread home ownership: "Call it the Russian dream", said Alexander Braverman, the Director of the Federal Fund for the Promotion of Housing Construction Development. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, worried about his nation's very low birth rate, said he hoped home ownership will inspire Russians "to have more babies".[77]

text: China

text: The Chinese Dream describes a set of ideals in the People's Republic of China. It is used by journalists, government officials and activists to describe the aspiration of individual self-improvement in Chinese society. Although the phrase has been used previously by Western journalists and scholars,[78][79] a translation of a New York Times article written by the American journalist Thomas Friedman, "China Needs Its Own Dream", has been credited with popularizing the concept in China.[79] He attributes the term to Peggy Liu and the environmental NGO JUCCCE's China Dream project,[80][81] which defines the Chinese Dream as sustainable development.[81] In 2013 the President of the PRC Xi Jinping began promoting the phrase as a slogan, leading to its widespread use in the Chinese media.[82]

text: The concept of Chinese Dream is very similar to the idea of "American Dream". It stresses entrepreneurship and glorifies a generation of self-made men and women in post-reform China. Such as those rural immigrates who moved to the urban centers and achieve magnificent improvement in terms of their living standards, and social life. Chinese Dream can be interpreted as the collective consciousness of Chinese people during the era of social transformation and economic progress.

text: The idea was put forward by the new CPC General Secretary Xi Jinping on November 29, 2012. The government hoped to create a revitalized China, while promoting innovation and technology to restore the international prestige of China. In this light, Chinese Dream, like American exceptionalism, is a nationalistic concept as well.