South Florida Weather Alerts Issued By National Weather Service

MIAMI, FL - South Florida is beginning to feel the impacts of Hurricane Irma. The first hurricane-force wind gusts of 74 miles per hour have been recorded in Key West, the National Weather Service reported. A Tornado Warning including Fort Lauderdale, Pompano Beach and Plantation expired at 4:15 a.m.

The Weather Service said that some tornadoes have already been reported and urged residents to stay alert for possible additional Tornado Warnings. Thousands have already lost power with heavy rain being reported. The Weather Service was predicting 20 inches of rain produced by Irma.

At 3:55 a.m., Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue was reporting many live wires down and urged residents to not go outside.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami reported that Irma is now a Category 4 storm with maximum sustained winds of 130 miles per hour.

The Storm Surge Warning has been discontinued north of North Miami Beach to Jupiter Inlet, the National Hurricane Center said in its 11 p.m. advisory.

The center of Irma is expected to cross the Lower Florida Keys Sunday morning and then move near or along the west coast of Florida Sunday afternoon through Monday morning.

Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 70 miles from the center, and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 205 miles.

Florida Power and Light reported that more than 170,000 homes and businesses in Florida are without power with more than half the outages in the Miami-Dade area.

The combination of a dangerous storm surge and the tide will cause normally dry areas near the coast to be flooded by rising waters moving inland from the shoreline. The water is expected to reach the following heights above ground if the peak surge occurs at the time of high tide: North Miami Beach to Card Sound Bridge, including Biscayne Bay - 3 to 5 feet; South Santee River to Fernandina Beach - 4 to 6 feet; Clearwater Beach to Ochlockonee River - 4 to 6 feet; Fernandina Beach to Jupiter Inlet - 2 to 4 feet; North of North Miami Beach to Jupiter Inlet - 1 to 2 feet.

In its 2 a.m. update, the Hurricane Center reported no changes in its watches and warnings issued earlier Saturday night.

The Hurricane Center reported that a Storm Surge Warning is in effect for South Santee River southward to Jupiter Inlet, North Miami Beach southward around the Florida peninsula to the
Ochlockonee River, Florida Keys and Tampa Bay.

A Hurricane Warning is in effect for Fernandina Beach southward around the Florida peninsula to Indian
Pass, Florida Keys, Lake Okeechobee, Florida Bay.

A Hurricane Watch is in effect for North of Fernandina Beach to Edisto Beach. A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for West of Indian Pass to the Okaloosa/Walton County Line, North of Fernandina Beach to South Santee River.

A Storm Surge Warning means there is a danger of life-threatening inundation, from rising water moving inland from the coastline, during the next 36 hours in the indicated locations.

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By 11 a.m. Saturday, Irma, which tore through the Caribbean, leaving at least 20 people dead, was packing maximum sustained winds of 125 mph.

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