. this is cnn breaking news. i'm chris cuomo here in naples, florida. hurricane irma, 75-mile-per-hour sustained winds battering the northern parts of florida. we have a picture coming in from

daytona beach where you have seen the drama of the wind and the storm surge affecting the shoreline. 4 million people without power. 6 million were forced to evacuate. with the light of day, because, again, 4 million people without power, we're among them, here in naples, we will begin to see the devastation. this is not about the past. it's about the present. sarah? >> reporter: yeah. another band of strong winds coming through, though they have died down. we are hearing breaking news that authorities have decided, the police department has decided to go out and rescuing about 25 people in an apartment building. that has been going on the past

half an hour. we just talked to the police chief who told us they decided to go ahead and bear these winds because they felt these lives were in danger. there were so many people in potential danger from the flooding that they went out, even though the winds are gusting above 40 miles per hour, which is usually the amount of speed that will stop first responders from going out. so police out rescuing folks as we speak. we understand now the folks are okay. we will get more information from police when they are done. they were in the middle of it when we called is and said they would call us back. that gives you some indication, yeah, some people did stay. but most of the folks on daytona beach, including officials, had no idea -- hold on. another gust coming through. had no idea the storm would come through like this, the actual eye of the storm would come and pass over daytona beach.

they thought this would stay on the west coast after it hit in the areas of sanibel island, for example. naples, where you are, chris. they just didn't realize that it would make a turn. irma has been very tricky. it made a turn unbeknownst to the folks here and the county adjacent to us. it has cape canaveral, brevard county. emergency management was there. they told us two tornados have touched down in brevard county this evening, overnight and into the morning. and there were 40 tornado warnings during all of this. all they're getting, this major wind. in these cells there are tornados. so a lot of fear whipped up to try and make sure that people are okay. luckily so far when it comes to brevard county and those

tornados, it is is still dark and they have to assess. they don't have any injuries. we are going to get an update from police about the rescue they just did here on daytona beach even in these dangerous conditions. chris? >> reporter: imagine to have to go through a hurricane especially in the dark. they're not going to know what they're dealing with for hours still yet to come. hurricane irma isn't going anywhere. you are expected to get hours more of this. let us know when to come to you, sara, when you have perspective from your vantage point. let's go to chad myers. you have been telling the story from duration. they have been getting a hit for a while in daytona. it is not completely over even in miami. how does this storm generate so much suck over such a broad range? >> because it had such a low pressure to start with. we were down in the 930s. look at your barometer hanging

on the wall that you never look at. 2770. it is is over as far as it will go. we are seeing the most dangerous part of the storm right now is about savannah, charleston, down to daytona where our sara is. there is surge coming here. there is still surge on the backside because of the way the storm is spinning in the middle. that's not what they are worried about. this is a slight surge. two to three feet into tampa because it didn't moved over tampa. it moved east of there. because it moved east, the surge is on the east now. jacksonville, st. john's winter. main street bridge set the all time record set by hurricane dora in 1964. and the water is still pouring into this area. there's daytona. one band after another. sara will not get it of these bands for hours.

this is the area seeing significant flooding. fernandina beach, you're 17 feet above where you should be and you're at low tide. another six feet at high tide at noon today. jacksonville, st. augustine, if you are along the intercoastal, st. simon's island, your water goes up at noon today. some spots will be 13 feet above the mean sea level. we are seeing high tides today. six feet normal high tide. then add seven or eight feet on top of that. this will be truly a problem today. if you're near the water anywhere in this area, let me just circle this. if you are here, i want you to -- welsh maybe not here but you get the idea. if you are on the water there, i want you to go outside and see where the water is. it is coming up so fast. it will come up even faster as

high tide comes through. after 7:00, the water will go up. we're at low tide now. it's going to go up. you could be in trouble. if you can see the water and you think about it, it's going to go up six feet more were than that. i want you out of there. you don't want first responders having to come and get you. we are already seeing that because people didn't expect this water to be this high and it already is. >> reporter: that is lucky enough to have power, cell power still in this storm. people dealing with it right now. kaley hartem is up in gainesville up on the northern part of on florida. what's going on there? >> reporter: well, chris, as i went on the air with you about an hour ago a siren went off at the university of florida football stadium. it was just a fire alarm.

nothing to actually be alarmed back. it was such an eery feeling. within the next hour we're expecting the heaviest rains, the strongest winds, perhaps even hurricane force winds. until this point we have not felt anything that can compare to what we saw at daytona beach. nothing has made it difficult for me to stand up and talk to you. we have seen tree debris. this city prides themselves on their trees like the oak behind me or the palm trees that line the streets. there have been reports of downed trees all over the place. 30% of people in the gainesville area are without power. chris, the question here, what will the next hour bring? we'll be standing by.

>> reporter: the storm comes and she does not want to leave. it is enough to knock out power. it's going to change people's lives there. let's hope that's the worst part there. kaylee, keep us in the loop. >> art, can you hear us? >> yes, sir. >> what do you know about what's on the ground? how bad are you dealing with power outage? what are you hearing from people where you are. >> county wide we have 50,000 without power. we are expecting the worst to come through within the next 20 minutes. we're braced. we're ready. we're ready to get out of it, get over it, and get to recovery. >> in terms of what you have had to do so far, are you getting emergency calls? are you able to get out?

>> yeah. we have been shuterred for two hours. we have widespread tree damage and wires down. we will tackle that with the road crews. we have chainsaw crews out with heavy equipment that we use with your s.w.a.t. teams that we will clear roads with to get them back open quickly. >> reporter: god willing, you're going to be wrong in terms of your worst concerns. but what are they right now? in terms of before she rolls through in ernest, what are you worried about? >> like your reporter touched on earlier, we are a tree city here. we pride ourselves on the big trees that we have. at day break, the worst fear is trees on houses and things we will discover when we get some light. >> do you have what you need to deal with that kind of

situation? are you going to have a need for volunteers? if so, please let us know so we can help you with that. are you expecting that? do you have the manpower? >> yeah. we have plenty of manpower and we have the national guard imbedded here with us. so we anticipate that we will quickly be able to handle those situations as we locate them. >> reporter: all right. sheriff, thank you very much. let us know how we can help and what the needs are and the need for 346rgz. and please be safe. >> thank you. we appreciate it. >> reporter: all right. alison, you heard the sheriff say the national guard is sheltering in place right now. a lot of national guardsmen are already in place, prepositioned. that's going to make a critical difference. they don't have to work their way into areas. they'll start there. >> the general was very

impressed. noaa tropical weather meteorologist bill south stayed some key west through the weekend and hunkered down in the noaa bunker. bill, great to have you with us. tell us what it was like in the bunker this weekend. >> it was busy, believe it or not. i had a lot of interest in the media with interviews. i felt safe, there's no doubt about it. it was really raucous outside. you could hear the wind blowing and the trees shaking, all that stuff. tell you what, i did feel safe. i felt secure. just tried to do my best to get information to the people if they stayed behind to shelter in their interior rooms even in

bathrooms and the bathtub covered in a mattress. >> of course that's why you stayed, to try to continue to get information out. i understand that your storm bunker was built to withstand 220-mile-per-hour winds, which is why obviously you were much safer than anybody who just stayed in their house. so what's it like in the keys this morning? i know the sun isn't up yet. do you have any sense of what the conditions are in terms of the storm surge, in terms of hrbg terroristhe bridges being washed out. >> we were on the phone with the county that the keys are in. there is no or low water pressure. the aqueduct authorities believe there's a few leaks in the main water pipe that brings the water down from the mainland. they're going to have to get on that this morning to get us

water. there's no electricity throughout the keys. no cell service at least in the lower and middle keys. there might be cell service in the upper keys. u.s. 1, the only road that comes in and out of the florida keys, there's three choke points that are completely ininaccessible. mile masher 75 is washed out. there is a large pole blocking the road at mile marker 35. and mile marker 29 is washed out. the main impact is the island of big pine key lies between mile marker 35 and mile marker 29. so we don't have any idea what the damage is like there until we can get the road open and get there. today we're going to have some aerial flights over to assess the damage. so we'll have a better idea once we get these flights in here and

be able to assess the damage. >> oh, my gosh, phil, bill, it does not sound good. it sounds like they're marooned. no cell service. no electricity. no water. and really no way to now get out if there are all of these blockages on the roads. so how does this -- because you're an expert, give us a perspective how irma compares to others? >> for me, it's the worst storm i have ever seen. historically, it's probably in the top three or four for the keys since 1851. >> oh, my gosh. that gives us helpful perspective. thank you very much. we'll check back with you as it gets lighter to see just what the keys look like. thank you for being with us on new day.

>> thank you. >> chris, that just gives us a great sense if people stayed behind just how cut off really from all civilization they are at this hour. >> reporter: listen, i spent a lot of time talking to bill south. his perspective from down in the keys was invaluable. and knowing what was coming was helpful. dealing with it is a different task. look at miami. when we come back after the break, they thought they were going to be spared. take a look at the pictures and you tell me if that looks like they were spared. we'll bring you the latest from there next.

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hurricane irma still in full effect, still battering florida as a hurricane 1 category, 75-mile-per-hour sustained winds. gusts far above that. we are getting reports of the damage as it moves through the states. and the numbers just keep popping. now the number of people without power in florida is 5.7 million. imagine what a big percentage of this state that is and how long it may last. we're also getting reports from jacksonville. the storm surge there, which is a big concern with this storm, especially in this state, now at an all-time record. they're not done with irma. they are just in the middle of the exposure to the front part of that storm. they broke their record from 1964 set by hurricane dora. these are the wrong kinds of

records. this is not the kind of history we want to make ever let alone with the storm hurricane irma. let's get to rosa flores in miami. another shock effect. that city was supposed to be spared. and not only did it get hit, but it seemed like it would never end, and the damage reflects that duration. rosa? >> reporter: kraouyou know, chr miami was pummeled for hours. at this hour, 800,000 people are without power in miami-dade. the tree damage you see behind me and debris are a common sight all over the city. two cranes snapped. as you mentioned, the eye did not barrel down miami. but it's safe to say that irma barreled through florida without mercy. hurricane irma walling the sunshine state coast to coast making landfalls as a category

4. leaving the low-lying florida keys under water. powerful 130-mile-per-hour winds whipping through southwest florida sunday, downing power lines and leaving a trail of debris behind. more than 4 million customers without power across the state. pummeling marco island as a category 3 registering some of the strongest winds in the state. these two photos from marco island taken just 15 minutes apart showing docks completely submerged by the storm surge. in naples, 140-mile-per-hour wind gusts tossing aluminum siding from mobile homes throughout the neighborhood. peeling the roof clean off of this apartment building in miami. the dramatic moment caught on camera. roaring winds and water turning

streets into rivers. construction cranes weighing several tons threatening everything below. at least two cranes in downtown miami snapping under the pressure of irma's howling winds. police rescuing this 4-month-old baby and its mother from a flooded home. a backyard tree is uprooted right before a family's eyes in fort lauderdale. several tornados reported as hurricane irma began its assault on florida. water spouts just like this one, popping up, threatening to wreak havoc. florida's governor saying to heed evacuation orders. over six million ordered to evacuate, becoming one of the largest in u.s. history. >> if you have been ordered to evacuate, you need to leave now. >> reporter: more than 160,000 hunkering down in shelters across the state. and 35 people were forced to

evacuate riviera beach after the roof collapsed on this apartment complex. amid the chaos, a miracle in coral springs. this baby girl delivered at home. first responders carrying the little one you to safety. miami-dade is under a curfew until 7:00 a.m. eastern. 28 people were arrested overnight for looting. and schools are closed until further notice. but, chris, in the middle of all of this, a little glimmer of normalcy. we have learned while the airport is closed today, limited operations resume tomorrow. chris? >> reporter: all right, rosa. we are hoping to be equally shocked by the recovery. right now we have the city manager of naples, bill moss. we spoke to you before. you said you had a plan. we didn't expect what happened yesterday.

making history in the wrong kind of way with the gusts. the surge. we still don't know what's out there in terms of flooded homes. what are you worried about? >> well, the storm was as fierce as i had ever expected. the miracle is the backside of the storm just seemed to peter out for us. that was very, very helpful. we could have had much more damage as a result of that. the streets are blocked because of fallen trees. some of the streets are flooded because of the tied tidal surge. , storm surge. we have had very little damage that we have been able to see in the dark. very little damage to businesses. all in all i think we will be back to business very quickly. we will mobilize this morning, start clearing the streets. it may take all day and maybe into tomorrow before we can get

people safe and back to their homes. the power will be the big issue. electricity might be out for a day. it might be out for weeks. >> it went out fairly early on. that's why it is so dark. the only lights we have are battery-powered lights here. the only time you see lights here is headlights. what they reveal is not good. people shouldn't be out driving. hopefully they are mostly media. and the flooded homes. i saw drone footage that did not look good. >> again, we will not be able to know until we get started. most of our homes are elevated because of the fema flood elevation codes. most will be protected, but there will be some damage. we will have to assess as we go along today. >> you will turn a negative into a positive and take a gust that set a record and use it as an emblem of what the city can endure. >> by the end of the day, we will have our main thoroughfares

open. if not, we will have them ready for tomorrow. if people want to come babbling, they will have to be very safety it won't be convenient. the weather will be hot. there will be no air-conditioning. but at least they have a chance to come back to their homes. >> we will get information out. you let us know what we need toe tell the people here, especially until the power gets back on. we are going person to person telling them what's going on. i'm glad to see you're safe and hope it's a quick recovery. >> thank you. >> absolutely. >> bill moss is the city manager. i know you have a lot to do. you have to get to work. walk this way. that's a wall. you can't go that way, bill. we know they have a whole plan in effect. he said we prepared. we have been doing this for 40 years. bill moss, alison, has done this 40 years. he said he nephew has dealt with what they have tkaoelt with fde

this one. >> from the keys up to north florida and daytona beach, these are live pictures. it is still hitting daytona beach as we speak. it passed the keys, miami, naples where you are. look at this. this is a city. but it looks -- obviously you can see the waves blowing through it. it's just incredible that millions of people right now are still in the dark in florida. we have gotten new updates on how many millions have lost electricitiment a live report for you in just moments. looking for adventure this labor day? holy smokes. oh man, that's pretty intense.

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hour, gusts were higher. this is daytona beach we want to show you right now. storm surge. wind. latest count, 5.7 million floridians, no power. how long will they not have power? that is a big question mark right now. jacksonville, the northern part of the state, getting hammered. the midst of the storm by no means over. breaking a record set in 1964 with hurricane dora. this is not the kind of history you ever want to make. we had the city manager from naples here. they don't want to be known as a city that endured hurricane irma. sara seidner. look at what's going on around

you. >> reporter: yeah. i mean, irma has been one tricky storm for a lot of folks. the emergency responders are watching it as we are. thinking it was going up the west coast. it was really light. suddenly everything changed. as we got later and later into the night and the morning hours, things got outrageous. as it turned out, the eye was starting to come right across daytona beach. now, we are definitely in the last two hours we have definitely noticed a very different scenario compared to earlier. it was sustained winds. my face was literally kind of pushed back from the wind. it was like standing in a wind tunnel. it was so strong. and now you can comfortable

stand except for every now and then there's a gust. so things have changed here in daytona beach. i want to mention a couple of different things. during this event in the county next to us, brevard county, that has the nasa and cape canaveral, they said two tornados touched down. they are concerned about whether or not there is damage. there were 40 tornado warnings. very, very terrifying for anyone watching this come through their neighborhood. here, even with these winds, first responders did go out to make rescues. 20 to 25 people we understand because they were getting flooded. the most dangerous thing in these storms, the thing that

kills more than anything else is floodwaters. chris? >> sara, thank you for the report. stay safe. important perspective there. the winds get the headlines, the miles per hour. it's the water that kills. that's the number one cause of death. you heard sara report that. it's true. storm surge is a very big deal. this is a bad luck story. it went places it wasn't supposed to. there is also good luck. we're not reporting on people losing their lives yet. accounts are coming in, they're being checked. when you see what this storm has been doing, the fact that there was masses of losses of life through the caribbean and as the storm moved through, there's been tremendous tragedy. we have the fire beach from

daytona beach. drew driscoll, can you hear me? >> chris, i can. good morning from the world's famous beach. >> chief, i can hear you. if you can hear me, tell us about the rescues that were necessary. pwepb the first responders don't want to go out once the winds are above 40. that's why you are the best of us. you will save us even in the worst of conditions. >> yes. unfortunately, the winds exceeded our threshold where we had to stop operations. once life came in jeopardy we had to take calculated risks to help members of the community. several of these included people caught in floodwaters. we have had a couple structure fires. hopefully the winds die down shortly and the daylight breaks so we can begin to assess the damage throughout the city.

>> reporter: we know that's going to be a really important part of this event. you will get the light of day. there are certain power concerns. what are you worried that you are going to find? >> fortunately for us, as we begin our preliminary look at the damage, several thoroughfares are wide open for first responders to travel. unfortunately, our core historic damage suffered severe flooding. so accessing those people, we're utilizing high water apparatus so we could safely rescue those people and get them to high ground. we are asking everyone to stay indoors. sorry, chris. go ahead. >> reporter: chief, what you have to say matters more. please finish your point.

>> right now we're asking that all the residents remain indoors and allow first responders to access everywhere we need to go. we understand your call is important to us. we have several support agencies assists us with the rescue. should you need anything, 911 is available and the hospitals are ready to accept you. >> reporter: chief, as you get information, it's important for people to know. please stay safe out there today. >> absolutely. thank you, chris. >> reporter: and you remember chief driscoll and many of the men and women will go out for everybody else, they have their own families, loved ones that either they haven't been with through this storm or they will need to leave behind in their hour of of need to help everyone else. remarkable. where are we headed next? >> such a good reminder. thank you for that.

irma's fury is being felt up and down florida. up next, we'll speak to a florida lawmaker to get a look at the devastation in his district.

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monroe county, florida, which includes the keys, remains closed indefinitely. joining us on the phone is the congressman. his district includes the florida keys and part of miami-dade county. congressman, thank you for joining us. what are you hearing from first responders and your constituents in that area? >> allison, good morning. the sun prepares to rise here. we have many trees uprooted, many still without power. the forecast was showing a direct hit to the miami metro area a few days ago. our true concern is for constituents in the florida keys. they took a direct hit. only after the sunrises will we

know what the damage is. authorities just don't know. i'm hoping to get an airlift to the keys later today to get on the ground and help that community, those communities. every island is a community in and of itself, to help them start rebuilding and recovering. we know fema is attempting to move into the area. the u.s. coast guard is attempting to return to the florida keys since they completely evacuated. we're just anxious to get down to many of the local heroes who remain there, first responders who voluntarily decided to stay. of course emergency managers and some residents month decided to stay. this was a historic storm for that area. we are anxious to get down there and see how we can begin to help. >> we talked to one of those

folks, one of the experts who stayed behind so he could get information out to the state. he's a noaa meteorologist. he hunkered down in the noaa bunker there. he gave us information that does sound dire. he said people in the keys right now are without electricity. they are without water. they are without cell service or internet. and the brings connecting them have been blocked or partially washed away. it sounds like they are truly marooned. so what will you do to get them back on the grid? >> well, the first thing we have to do is coordinate logistics. a lot of relief materials are going to arrive by air as soon as we cannen sure that the airports there are safe for aircraft to land. also secretary mattis before the storm hit pledged to have the

department of defense support these efforts. we may see a lot of on supplies arrive by naval vessel or by sea. the that is the challenge. it is tough to service the florida keys under normal circumstances. it is. it's a long island chain. one road in and one road on out.

>> chris, you hear they are waiting for the coast guard and navy vessels. as we heard general henry say, they are waiting to get there for all needed supplies. >> at least five major vessels will be coming this way. look, another indication this storm is not over. i'll tell you right now you talk about tender mercys and small blessings, this is something that every floridian wants to

see as the hazy burns off and the sun starts to rise this morning, a clear sky. everyone has been looking at this wall of white and waves of rain. it's still going on elsewhere. here in naples, one of the fastest gusts ever recorded here. this is our reality. look at daytona beach. that is the reality right now. hurricane irma still pouring down. category 1, 75-mile-per-hour winds battering parts of this state that were not ready for it. we have the latest next.

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the sun is coming up in naples, florida on the west coast. the sky is clear. that's good. what the sun is going to reveal is not. and this situation is far from over. this storm still a category 1. still battering parts of northern florida right now.

so many not out of danger. 5.7 million. maybe even more now without power. who knows for how long. one of the stories of what's been going on is about the first responders. we kept telling you once the storm gets above 40 miles per hour sustained winds, they can't get out. that is the truth. it's too dangerous for them. but they did it anyway. proving why they are the best of us to go out and save the rest of us. ignatius carroll is with the fire department. can you hear me now, sir? >> yes, i can. good morning. >> it is amaze to go think the storm was going to spare us in miami, it would just be a glancing blow. the soaking and the wind and the cranes. what did you deal with yesterday? >> like you said, storms can be

unpredictable. not being able to respond to the rescue calls. you can imagine how challenging it was to us. once the winds died down a little bit allowing us to respond, that's what we did. >> it's one thing to talk somebody through about storm surge and how to stay safe. it's another to talk someone through a pregnancy. but that's what you had to do yesterday. tell me that story. >> well, one of the calls from our 911 dispatcher was assisting a young lady who was pregnant. she called earlier. we were unable to get to her. they told her what she needed to do. she called in and assisted with the delivery, got in contact with an ob/gyn doctor to provide additional assistance to tell

them what they needed to do when the baby was first delivered. >> how is the baby? how is the mom? >> we understand right now they are doing great. we definitely have to do a follow-up here at the office. we're curious to know what did they name the baby. >> absolutely, right? was it a little boy or girl, do we know? >> that, i don't know. >> all right. if it's a boy, it's tough to get stuck with the name irma. we know the johnny cash song, boy named sue. didn't work out for him. you made it by talking her through. please use us as a resource.

let us know what information has to get out. >> thank you for keeping us all informed as well. >> the governor has a home here. that wasn't fueling his concern. it is is spongy. it can't take much water. yesterday they got hit with these winds. nobody saw it coming. it was like a fire hose of air and wind. look at what we lived through yesterday literally for hours. >> these gusts are the real deal. there is eye benefit for us to be here. when this is done, as you know, we're going to go out with seven

and rescue and volunteer our time. there are the gusts you were talking about. it's going to be good to know where the worst is going. these branches are coming off. it was only a matter of time. >> it is really the like of visibility. we could barely see 100 yards in either direction. obviously with the winds blowing at this speed, if there is debris flying through the air, i don't want to be out in the middle of that and get caught up side the head by a flying branch or anything. >> some of these big trees surrounding this hotel, i don't know if that you are going to make it. that's why i grabbed the producer and put him back inside. >> get everybody off the street. >> all right. hey, chad, water is coming up the street here. this is coming out of nowhere.

all of a sudden it is flooded. do you see it? >> absolutely. >> this is something that he will remember for a long time. >> chris, it was remarkable to watch your reporting yesterday. i couldn't turn away. i watched you for hours. it was a little misleading, chris. you have such good balance and balla ballast. if you weren't being knocked off your feet by the wind i would have been blown into a tree had i been standing on that balcony. but you just stood there. he can see how intense the wind was. but you weren't being batted around by it as so many other people. >> reporter: first, let's unpack what you just said. one, preposterous for you to be in a situation like that because you're too valuable. i don't want you to talk to anybody in a situations like that, let a lope be in one.

you matter too much to us. ballast is a nice way of calling me fat, ali is son. you called me ballast. i'm 220 pounds. ed lavandara and i were built to stand still in a storm. thank god everything that needed to survive did. alison and i will return right after this. when heartburn hits fight back fast with tums chewy bites. fast relief in every bite. crunchy outside. chewy inside. tum tum tum tum tums chewy bites.

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all right. hurricane irma still battering the state of florida. 75-mile-per-hour sustained winds. gusts much higher. storm surge affecting the entire state. at latest count, 5.7 million people without power. as the storm moves north, the numbers only grow. 150,000 are still in shelters. with good reason. in jacksonville, a place that was not supposed to see any major action, they already set a storm surge record. they broke a 1964 mark from hurricane dora. that is the kind of history you don't want to make. alison is new york, anderson in tampa, john in miami. and we are