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we continue now with the special edition of "20/20." hurricane irma: monster storm. >> that's a live shot of tampa bay international airport. so many fears that tampa facing a worst-case scenario as irma continues to move up the coast. and the storm chasers, people risking their lives to learn more about the fury of these storms. we're about to learn about a man who has been live streaming all day, getting more than half a million views. >> unreal. >> it's 11:00 a.a.a.a. h t the bays and inlets went out. as the eye

surge will be hit marco island. as we're going to total whiteout conditions, 98 to 100-mile-an-hour wind. just a solid wall of white coming in now to marco island. total whiteout now. winds sustained at 80, going to 90. look at this in front of me. oh, my gosh. here we go. i'm escaping marco island now. the water surging in, coming up rapidly on the north side of the bay. oh, my gosh, it's surging in here on the north side. rising five to eight feet in the last 15 minutes. i'm off the island now, northbound. the water is rapidly coming up

here. we're about ready to get pounded about the 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. time frame. it's going to be really rough here. everything is breaking apart. flying debris. water is coming up. trees are flying, breaking off. looks like we have a two-inch, three-inch water main break here. just shredded the trees. looks like a tornado went through here. all the trees are shredded, it debarked them. i haven't seen this before in a hurricane. looks like it may have been hit with a possible tornado vortex. shredded all the trees on 41 here. this is on marco island north. >> incredible work there from jeff, and ginger zee is here

with us. the storm chasers are a special breed. >> and jeff is an o.g. storm chaser. >> what's that? >> original. if anybody knows what he's doing, it's him. he sounds excitable, oh, they must be there for the adrenaline. >> but it's not. >> it isn't. these folks have actual observation kits, and the power of having video and being there right away after a storm. they're starting to match with some of the observation tools that we can put together things that we had no idea about in the past. so, it is powerful, i know people ask, why are you out there? jeff is one of the many who is trained, and has not only the background, but the experience. >> he's there importantly to gather crucial data. >> and for the folks that left

marco island, they saw on the street, they were able to see their homes, their first glimpse. >> in the meantime, hurricane irma tonight, the next few hours will be crucial for those cities up the northwestern coast of the florida panhandle. tampa, right in the cross-hairs. a low-lying, extremely vulnerable city. >> and still talking about the impact to the east side of florida. tampa, melbourne, the coast already feeling hurricane force winds. orlando reporting in. and it's pulling away from the southern keys and miami, and the hefty stuff moving north. if you're in gainesville, daytona beach, southwest or southeastern georgia, you could have a tornado. keep the alerts on all night. and the hurricane moving up overnight through tampa, it will

move up to the panhandle tomorrow, into alabama and tennessee. the storm surge, so many people have said it. the storm is still five-some hours away, but we'll be seeing the surge through tomorrow morning. >> and we want to go to rob marciano after this break. straight talk. if you love your phone... but hate your bill. do something about it! no, not that. straight talk wireless lets you keep your phone, number and 4g lte network... for a lot less... pick up a bring your own phone activation kit today... and get even more high-speed data. 10 gigs for 45 bucks a month or 15 gigs for 55. it's time to ask yourself... why haven't i switched? find out more at straighttalk.com. welcome to maxx you.

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from tampa tonight, that city will be tested next as irma continues her path northward. some forecasting between 5, to 6, to 8-foot storm surge.

and the rain is already hitting where rob marciano is. here's in sarasota. you have talked at length about the concerns as the storm moves northward. millions of americans still in the path of this hurricane. >> reporter: very much so. we're seeing the scenes you showed us four or five hours ago, and tom llamas showed us two hours ago. the winds and run have been picking up. the wind blowing the hardest in front of our hotel, but there is so much debris flying through, it's simply not safe. the winds blowing some of the trees, taking down some of the tree limbs. a long night ahead of us for sure. the way this is tracking, we'll be on the western side of it, but that's no picnic. the only saving grace, there will be a longer time when the winds are blowing out to the

water for the surge we're talking about. and we're very susceptible to the surge. >> and rob, you and the team stay safe in sarasota. we are on the watch for the storm surge. significant flooding where we are, and we won't have a real perspective until sunrise tomorrow. and tom llamas, in ft. myers, we saw the cycles they predict, the hurricane comes in, then there's a lull with the eye, and the backside of the hurricane really nailed us. the sky is extraordinary right now. what are you seeing? >> reporter: i think we're in the eye, to the backside of the tomorrow. right after we were live with you on this "20/20" special, we had to seek shelter inside. minutes later, this massive tree

branch snapped off, and fell right in front of the marina. and the interesting thing, the palm trees are waving in the opposite direction than when we started this broadcast. it's incredible, the hurricane has shifted around, the winds have shifted, and wind coming from an opposite direction. and some other branches littering bridges and streets throughout ft. myers right now. but a huge shift in the speed of the wind, and the rain. the wind and rain have died down, i think we're in the backside of the eye. but just like you, i'm keeping my eye on the water. you have to keep an eye on the storm surge after these hurricane. it's incredible what just a few minutes make, just in the hour, we saw the winds go east to west, now blowing west to east, and the rain has died down. there's a curfew about to take effect. we haven't seen any cars or

people walking around, which is good. at one point in the storm, somebody went out to their boat when the winds are high. some people make their off the boats, some people living on the boats. hopefully he's okay. >> and the incredible force of the hurricane, the airport, 142-mile-per-hour winds. and we came out, and everything was calm for about a half an hour before it picked up again. we'll have much more on this "20/20" special edition, hurricane irma, right here on abc. back here in a moment. ♪

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and there you see hurricane irma, still moving up the coast of florida. tampa, st. petersburg in the crosshairs next. and a wind alert across pinellas county, telling people to take shelter immediately. and we do want to go to eva pilgrim right now. you just got this alert moments ago. though it seems relatively calm. >> reporter: there was a huge burst of wind that came in. and they sent out an alert on

our phones, saying the wind alert, and to take shelter immediately. i just want to show you, there are these lights on this football stadium, they have been waving back and forth, swinging quite aways. we have been watching as these gusts and heavy downpours come, the lights are swinging more and more. one of the major concerns in this area, they haven't had a major hurricane hit this area in almost 100 years. some of the building codes in south florida that have made that a safer place for people to be, that doesn't exist. a lot of the homes were built before the codes were in place, and will be put to the test tonight as irma comes through. >> eva, thank you. we do want to go to morgan mocha, thank you for joining us. we can see you on facetime, you're smiling, but you had a

rough day. your home, right on the water? >> actually, no. our home is right on the water, and we're actually about eight blocks up on naples park. right off of -- so far, been extremely scary. i'm a new york city girl, so it's very scary for me. this is my first hurricane. and -- like, you know how people always hype it up. it never really turns out to be as bad. but this has been really bad. >> what was the worst moment? >> i'm sorry, sir? >> what was the worst moment? >> what was the worst moment? >> mm-hmm. >> i would have to say, we lost our electricity the night before. and coming into that, the next

day, and then losing all the people on the block losing their electricity. and one by one, every breaker went out, like pop, pop. but like so many of them blew up, like, you know, in fire. and that was extremely, really scary. >> yeah. >> i've never seen that before in my life. and i'm -- the winds were really scary. and i mean, honestly, my house is on the water, and that's really, really scary for me to think, to go back to, is just -- it's just -- i know -- >> what are you going to see when you get home. i'm sure that's what worries you the most. as a new york city girl, who has picked hurricane irma as her

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we're back now with drone footage coming in. the damage in naples, we won't know the true scope tomorrow. and i have to think about all the people in shelters across florida, johnny told me, 70 years old, he doesn't have much time left, he's going to go to the shelter. >> and hurricane irma's path, we'll be tracking it throughout the evening. >> it will be a tough night for many. as the storm moves up to georgia and beyond, we'll be here all

morning long for "gma" from 7:00 a.m. straight through to noon. fort myers on abc7 news at 5:00, the butte a.m. impact on the state. bay area first responders already helping those in need. you'll hear from some of them. plus, keeping the florida wildlife safe where some of the most vulnerable residents will ride out the hurricane. abc7 news at 5:00 starts right now. >> announcer: live where you live, this is abc7 news. >> the scene speaks for itself. hurricane irma lashes florida with intense wind and major flooding. hello i'm eric thomas. the hurricane has been relentless and the impact will be felt for days to come. live doppler 7 shows us where the hurricane is right now, moving north right now across the state of florida. meteorologist lisa argen will fill you in in just a few