Anticipating Irma

Irma is now the largest Atlantic hurricane on record, one of a series of record-setting weather events this year.  Even the climate deniers are paying attention to her.  Rick Scott, the Florida governor who won’t let his staff utter the words “global warming” or write them in documents, is declaring this storm an emergency. And well he should, for Irma has the potential be a windier version of Harvey currently clocking 180 mph winds.  There are hurricane force winds 60 miles from the center, and tropical storm winds 160 miles from the center. It is a meteorological buzz saw pushed by prevailing winds toward us.

Antigua and Puerto Rico are in her sights, and next up the island of Hispaniola (Dominican Republic and Haiti) and then Cuba. Irma threatens to blow away all the Jewels of the Caribbean and then rip apart South Florida with its biggest hurricane since Andrew-that’s a name that all Floridians who know hurricanes fear. A retired name.  Andrew shattered neighborhoods and upended lives the way that Harvey has done in Houston.

And the lines on the long-term weather maps, which all experienced Floridians know to read, are nearly unanimous in pointing for Irma to move right up the peninsula of Florida-whether off-shore or right down the middle of the state won’t matter if Irma retains her power.  Forecasting has gotten too good to hope for a last-minute reprieve. This storm won’t die-the water’s too warm and the conditions are too ripe for a hell of a wind-storm. With rain.

So, the ice and water are flying off the shelves here, and the cars are gassing up.  While the rest of the country is focused on North Korea and DACA and the return of Congress, Florida has her eyes nervously on a spinning horror cruising through the Caribbean and the lines on the map aren’t good.