Monday, September 10, 2018

One Year Ago Today, Hurricane Irma Makes Landfall in the Florida Keys


     Sept. 10, 2017. Hurricane Irma has made landfall on Cudjoe Key in the lower Florida Keys.Sep 9, 2017  Hurricane Irma makes landfall at Cudjoe Key in the lower Florida Keys as a Category 4 storm with 130 mph sustained winds. A 106 mph gust was reported at National Key Deer Refuge in Big Pine Key. The storm headed north-by-northwest at 8 mph. 
      Sept. 10 by 2 p.m. Irma weakens to Category 3 storm with 120 mph winds. But a life-threatening surge of 10 to 15 feet of water was forecast, with residents of Naples and Marco Island told to move away from the water.   Sept. 10 at 3:35 p.m.  Irma makes landfall again in Florida on Marco Island as a Category 3 storm with 115 mph wind. A 130 mph wind gust was reported by the Marco Island Police Department.
     Sept. 10 by 6 p.m.  Irma winds down to a Category 2 storm with sustained winds of 110 mph. But a gust of 142 mph was reported at Naples Municipal Airport. A tide gauge measured a water 2.2 feet above mean higher high water, which represented a 7-foot increase in the previous hour and a half, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric