Not only is Hurricane Irma the strongest storm to form in the Atlantic outside the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea, it’s also larger than entire U.S. states.
Irma is larger than Florida, the very state forecasts show it reaching by the weekend, according to CBS News weather producer David Parkinson.
Your image of the morning on @CBSThisMorning…#Irma is so expansive you could fit the entire state of Florida in it… pic.twitter.com/bgUal3zJCG
— David Parkinson (@DPartlyCloudy) September 6, 2017
Florida is about 65,755 square miles, which means Irma is also bigger than other states, including Ohio and New York. Ohio is 44,825 square miles and New York is 54,556 square miles.
The islands of St. Martin and Anguilla fit almost entirely within Irma’s eye as it passed over them Wednesday morning. Irma brought 185-mile-per-hour winds that whipped rain and ripped through trees.
Yep…that’s St. Martin and Anguilla both fitting almost entirely within the eye of #Irma pic.twitter.com/hloRKiVfPs
— David Parkinson (@DPartlyCloudy) September 6, 2017
Irma is expected to reach Florida as early as Friday. President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Rick Scott both issued emergency declarations for all 67 counties in the state.
Scott mobilized the National Guard, and Florida officials ordered mandatory evacuations for the state’s southernmost counties. Irma is expected to hit Florida as a Category 3 storm with wind speeds higher than 110 miles per hour.
Follow Michael on Facebook and Twitter
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.