Hurricane Irma

MIAMI – Authorities sent an aircraft carrier and other Navy ships to help with search-and-rescue operations in Florida on Monday as a flyover of the hurricane-battered Keys yielded what the governor said were scenes of devastation. “I just hope everyone survived,” Gov. Rick Scott said.

Storm surge and rain flooded coastal communities, winds sent trees crashing onto inland homes and the world’s busiest airport in Atlanta canceled hundreds of flights as Irma’s punch was felt across Georgia despite its weakened status as a tropical storm.

Before crashing into Florida, Hurricane Irma set all sorts of records for brute strength as it flattened Caribbean islands and swamped the Florida Keys. Irma’s assault – so soon after Harvey’s deluge of Houston – marked the first time the U.S. was hit by two Category 4 storms in the same year.

Announcing itself with roaring 130 mph winds, Hurricane Irma plowed into the mostly emptied-out Florida Keys early Sunday for the start of what could be a slow, ruinous march up the state’s west coast toward the heavily populated Tampa-St. Petersburg area.

A crane atop a high-rise building under construction collapsed Sunday in downtown Miami amid strong winds from Hurricane Irma – the first known crash of the two dozen such heavyweight hazards looming over the city skyline as the monster storm powers across the state.

In a 2017 hurricane season that has already seen two monster storms, Harvey and Irma, manufactured homes are turning out to be just a small fraction of the federal government’s plan to deal with displaced people, with only 1,700 trailers available.

The White House says President Donald Trump has received a “comprehensive update” on Hurricane Irma.

With the arrival of what is potentially one of the most devastating storms to ever hit Florida, officials have set aside 0.85 million gallons of water, filled 67 trailers with meals, and amassed 24,000 tarps. They also have asked the federal government to kick in 11 million meals and millions more gallons of water, plus nearly 700 cases of baby supplies.

Once the 426 humans who normally occupy cells at the Monroe County Jail were evacuated by bus to lockups in Palm Beach County, there was an opportunity to move 250 animals indoors, rather than leave them exposed to Hurricane Irma’s storm surge, rains and wind.