5.6 Million Asked to Evacuate Florida Ahead of Hurricane Irma Daily News

5.6 Million Asked to Evacuate Florida Ahead of Hurricane Irma Roughly one-quarter of the nation's third-largest state has either been asked or ordered to evacuate, according to an official. Florida's hurricane program manager, Andrew Sussman, said at least 5.6 million people have been asked to flee the storm, according to the Associated Press. This includes residents ordered to evacuate in South Florida, as well as those who live in substandard housing inland, the report added. The state is home to some 21 million people – many of which have temporarily relocated to Georgia or other neighboring states ahead of Irma's severe impacts. So far, some 850,000 Floridians have been urged to leave their homes as Irma churns ever closer to the U.S. coastline. "Time is running out," said Florida Gov. Rick Scott during a Friday morning press conference. "Today is the day to do what's right for your family and get inland for safety." Scott has repeatedly warned residents to heed warnings, stressing that the "sole focus is on life safety." "We are preparing for this storm aggressively. Every Floridian should take this seriously and be aggressive to protect their family," Scott said. Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine echoed the governor. "Please leave Miami Beach," Levine said during an interview on The Weather Channel. "You don't want to be here. This is a barrier island. This hurricane, as I've said before, is a nuclear hurricane. ... Please leave. You have time today. ... We don't want heroes; we want living people." As residents departed Florida ahead of Major Hurricane Irma, officials in Miami were taking no chances with its homeless population. According to the Associated Press, all of the estimated 1,100 homeless in the city were told to enter storm shelters or be detained and receive a mental health evaluation. They were using the Baker Act, a law that allows officials to institutionalize anyone who presents a danger to themselves or others, the AP also said. "We're going out and every single homeless person who is unwilling to come off the street, we are likely going to involuntarily Baker Act them," Ron Book, chairman of the Miami-Dade Homeless Trust, told the AP. At least six people were detained in such a manner by Friday afternoon, the report added. By law, they can be held for up to 72 hours before a court would have to allow their detention to be continued, the AP also said. President Donald Trump said Hurricane Irma "is a storm of absolutely historic destructive potential," adding that his administration is doing all it can to help with disaster preparations, and the U.S. "stands united" to address the storm. Former FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate was more direct in an interview with CNN: "Let me be blunt: anybody who didn't evacuate will drown, that's the risk." ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Source News : weather.com IF YOU LIKE VIDEO PLEASE subscribe to my channel You Click Subscribe: https://goo.gl/uBnEBa Website: https://goo.gl/uBnEBa Thanks You For Watch