we expect to strengthen in the coming hours. possibly back into a category 4 storm. and south florida is already experiencing tropical storm conditions with wind gusts topping 40 miles per hour. one of the major concerns, the surge. that could reach 15 feet in some areas along 234florida's west coast. more than 50,000 are in shelters. nearly 7 million people throughout the southeastern united states have been ordered to evacuate. >> this is a warning because we never take these kind of things seriously, but now we will because this is a serious situation. >> it's been difficult finding a shelter. we live about two miles away, but we are afraid of the water. >> it's been in a 2. didn't bother me. this one concerns me. >> and they are telling us we have a chance of 6 to 12 feet of storm surge, which i've been here since 1986 and we've never seen that. >> the hurricane has been

tracking more to the west which means an increasing threat to cities along the west coast including naples and that is where we find kerry sanders. what can you tell us from there? >> reporter: well, first of all, let me just give you a picture as we're standing in naples on the pier which is closed. and you can see this right here, it's really quite an impressive sight. this is known as a rain shaft. it might be also referred to as a shelf cloud. jim cantore sending me the information as i took a picture and showed to him. let's talk about what the situation is here on the west coast. you have the shift in the storm and that has caught some people a little flat footed. here in collier kourncounty and up one county, you have lee county and then further north you have charlotte county. all three of these counties have discovered that more people are evacuating than there is space inside the shelters. here in collier count i dcounty people have shown up in the

shelters and now there is no more room. the county is doing its best to find another shelter, but because time is of the essence, they are doing everything they can now to get the word out to the community to say if you have a home that is inland and if it is protected, it has storm shutters up and you feel that it is a strong enough place for you to stay, please invite friends, open your home to strangers. there is just not enough room at the shelters that are here. now, as you move up the coast, especially in charlotte county, which 13 years ago is where hurricane charlie came ashore as a category will and definite he investigation state being the area, because of that, you have sarasota countystate being the area, because of that, you have sarasota county saying we know why people are leaving, we'll o open up additional shelters to pick up the overflow there. so the real them of the story here is people are taking this very seriously. earlier in the week, they thought, well, this is going to go up the east coast, we won't

have it that bad. and now they realize what irnl ir irma is doing. in the fishing village of every ever grade city, we sent our drone in and there is not a soul there. it's vacant. everybody there with those homes that are already aware of the fact that mother nature here can be rough, you can see those homes are up 10, 12 feet on the stilts. that area there could get some of the strongest storm surge. again, more than 12 feet. >> care i a >> we've known each other 20 years and you've lived in florida and covered every hurricane both in florida and pretty much everywhere else in the world. and i just wonder, have you ever heard officials using the kind of language that fema officials, the governor of florida, using the kinds of warnings that they are use being here ever before in your decades of experience

covering these storms? >> reporter: no. we have heard them urge people before. i think it's recognition and this is hard for people to understand of what comes after. nobody wants to see a death toll that climbs. nobody wants to see the scope of the disaster that comes after. and so the best way to minimize that is to get people to understand what they have to do. there is a lot of people who recognize what is going on. by the same token, it's just curious and interesting to look at this. and we have lots of people doctor their cellphones taking pictures. it's a relatively nice day, but they know that the weather is changing. what are you going to do, evacuate? >> no, we're staying. >> and what is that accent, new york? >> new jersey. >> i can hear that. ever been through a hurricane before? >> oh, yeah, we went through the last one which was a hurricane 3. and we did pretty well thank god

through it. our house right now, we're like on east naples. and we're as sheltered down as much as we can. we have hurricane shelters. >> you've heard the leaders of the state and the country and they are urging people to take this with as much caution as possible. tell me what you think you have done that has answer that had request. >> well, i think you definitely have to take it seriously. and i think that we prepared as much as we possibly can can. and the fear for a lot of people in evacuatie ining is that expo on the road and you run out of gas. what do you do. suppose you go to the shelters and they keep moving you because they are fear. so i think it's the fear of being out in the storm and being stuck. so we feel like because our house is as secure as possible and supplied as much as possible, we feel like, you know, we're doing the best. for meet biggest thing is prayer. i think that if you pray and truly believe with faith, we'll make it through. >> okay. thank you. there a lot of people who are

doing that. praying that what i'm looking over my shoulder here is somehow going swing even further west. but at the echbd of the day, you have to remember, there is a huge, huge storm. so even if it continues to jog a little west, this is going to be felt across the entire state. >> nbc's kerry sanders in naples. we'll check back with you i'm sure. and joining us now is florida governor rick scott. governor, thank you so much for joining us. and i hope you just heard that interview that was done. some folks in naples who heard what you said, they heard the warnings. i certainly have listened to you over the last couple days. and if i was living in florida and i wasn't a journalist, i would be looking to get out for sure. but they say look, number one, they are concerned that they will get to a shelter and there is not going to be room. we're seeing that all right in the naples area. they are worried that tlel get another road and not find gas. what do you say to those folks that the late hour, governor?

>> well, i care about every citizen in the state. evacuations are not convenient. they are just not. shelters are not like your house. they are not. but the most important thing you can do is worry about your life and that's what i worry about every day. i want every person in the state to survive this storm. and so i tell everybody if you are in an evacuation zone, you need to get to a shelter, you need to goatet to a friend's ho, a safe place. and then everybody should have three days of water and food. it will take a while to get down here. this is a devastating storm. think about the difference between this and prior storms. we've never seen 15 feet above ground level of storm surge. we've never seen it. that is what will happen in the naples ft. myers area according to the national hurricane service. 15 feet. and so you have to understand, if all that water flows in to

your house and flows out, you will not survive it. it's as simple as that. and so i want everybody to be safe. i can understand that shelters might not be your favorite choice, but safety is -- everybody wants to live. i love my family. i want them to be safe. i evacuated my family from naples because i want them to be safe. so i'm praying for those citizens and those individuals that are there, that they will be safe. but i'm telling everybody, get to a safe place and then be ready to hunker down. >> are you convinced that you have in place what is needed? we saw at least one shelter where people have been waiting in line for five hours still weren't inside. and the line just went on and on and on again. we just heard from some folks in naples that one shelter is full. they are looking to see if they can find another shelter, but they are actually telling people if you have a safe home, hunker down where you are.

allow others to come into your home. how concerned are you that this is even bigger than so many communities may have expected and now with the turn with irma, that people are scrambling? >> well, we're under a state of emergency. and as we know, this hurricane has gone a little bit further to the west than people anticipated. we've opened up over 320 shelter, we have 70 more being opened around the state. our kourntsities are working together. this is a statewide effort. we're doing everything we can to bring more fuel into the state. i just got off a call with the ports, with the oil companies, with the carriers for the gas station to figure out how we get more fuel into the state. both before and after the storm. but i understand how -- my heart goes out to people that have not evacuated yet. i want them if they are in an

evacuation zone, if you're in collier or lee county aund knnd know there is going to be 15 feet of storm surge, i'm pleading with you for your life to go to a shelter. i know it will be inconvenient, but we will figure out -- we have a telephone number 1-800-342-3 1-800-342-3557. you can go to florida disaster.org/shelter. they will tell you where we have open shelters. we have buses that will pick people up. but here is the problem. we're running out of time. we cannot help anybody when the storm starts, when the winds get too high, we complaint run vehicles. when the water starts coming in, there is nothing that we can do to help you then. so i tell everybody think about being prepared now. sgl >> and for the folks who have decided to stay and if they find themselves as they very well may

with their home flooded but they are able to get to perhaps a higher floor and be dry but without electricity, do you have a sense how long it will be for folks like that to get help? >> well, we'll lose a lot of power. i have daily phone calls with all the utilities. we have pre-positioned a lot of assets. florida power and light says the southwest part staft white willd i hardest hit. this storm is impacting the whole state. typically you can position assets on one side staft or tof or the other. so it will take a little longer because we have to allow the storm to get all the way through the state to get all the resources. i just met with the coast guard. we're figuring out how fast we can get to the florida keys to assess the damage there to see

if there is any recovery efforts that we need. i'm worried about all the bridges down there because we lose one bridge, everybody south of that is stranded. so we have all the -- i talk to the president almost every day, fema director all the time. we have all the assets we're trying to get the down here. this is a devastating storm. i want people to understand, 15 feet potentially of storm surge. in the keys and southwest part of the state, even 5 feet is life-threatening. 3 feet is life-threatening. >> governor scott, your warnings have been clear and specific. our thought ts and prayers are with the people in florida. thank you for taking the time. >> thank you for getting the message out. i want to turn to rafael miranda who has the latest on the storm's path. and when you listen to the governor, and i know we've been talking about this, but the size

of this storm, the potential for that storm surge, it's breath taking. >> and we've been tracking it hour by hour and now we're see beings signs of intensification once again. the storm is starting to pull away from the cuba coastline. you can see on the satellite picture here. earlier on as the storm was hugging the coast, the eye disappears practically and now that it's emerging away from the coastline, away from the mountains, into the warm water, we're seeing the eye reform. and we're noticing an explosion of those stronger storms around the center of the storm all signs pointing to a healthier hurricane heading right toward the florida keys. and this area here, that is where you have the water temperatures near 90 degrees. that is all that is between cuba and the florida keys right now. nothing but fuel for this hurricane to continue to intensify. i would assume back to category 4 at least over the next 12 hours. the winds are already picking up showing signs of that intensification. miami now dealing with tropical storm conditions. the outer bands sweeping in and

marathon and keys seeing wind gusts of over 60 miles per hour. travel is already treacherous in the keys that the point. storm surge in effect. storm surge warning in effect for all of florida in the dark pink color. almost the entire state and even in to the panhandle a storm surge watch. region by region, we are still expecting a storm surge on the east side of the coast. miami, key largo, but 4 to 6 feet. stick significant, but not catastrophic. not what we're expecting along the gulf coast side and along the keys. keys tonight 5 to 10 feet storm surge and this is what governor scott was talking about southwest florida, a 10 to 15 foot storm surge as the storm works up the coast. we'll see if these numbers hold or need to be upped heading toward tampa bay. but even this forecast right now calling for a 5 to 8 foot surge in tampa and south of there 6 to 10 feet. these numbers are unreal. we don't know what it will look like, how it will play out really until it does. and that is tomorrow into monday. we have several days to go through with the storm.

>> and the bottom line for people who are listening and saying that i've rode out other storms before, you've never seen a storm like this. >> we haven't. there is nothing to compare to. and as governor scott was saying, 3 feet of storm surge can be enough to move you, move a car. these are numbers well above that. it's just not something that you want to try to face down in any means. you want to get out. >> wnbc meteorologist rafael miranda, thanks. let's take a look at live pictures of miami. the winds are picking up there. that area already seeing tropical storm conditions. we have teams covering the storm all throughout the state. stay with msnbc.

officials in cape coral are calling for evacuations. many others say they will ride out the hurricane. and some sthehelters are compley full. tropical storm-force winds are expected to show up in southwest florida just hours from now. and jacob soboroff is in cape coral. how are officials handling the situation? >> reporter: so we're literally driving around cape coral almost door to door essentially with the cape coral fire department. this young woman is getting advice from the fire department on what do in terms of a mandatory evacuation. they are telling people to get out thousand because cape coral and the 179,000 wrresidents tha live here are subject to a storm surge in this area. because we're about 5 feet above sea level and if the storm surge as predicted, 6 to 10 feet in this area, could be catastrophic. this is lieutenant morris from

the cape coral fire department. we have been riding around all day. you're saying essentially you won't be able to get to these people after the storm? >> it all depends on how much water comes in. but we can't drive our fire trucks in some of this stuff. and then with the debris, depending on how much damage there is. so it depends on how bad the storm is. >> and we've heard -- this is my person and he will opinion, knuckleheaded things. one man said he would drop the anchor from his fwhoet front bof his house. when you hear somebody say something like that, here is another gentleman still at home and on the other side as well, what does it make you think that somebody says i will ride it out in my boat in frornts nt of my ? >> it makes me sad because we care about the residents. we try really hard to protect them. we're doing the best we can and

we give them advice to get out and they come back and say that they will stay. >> and they say that they will stay here. frankly, it's hard to comprehend behind because with the size of the storm that is coming, the fact that they know -- take a listen to this announcement real quick. [ sirens ] >> this is an evacuation zone. you are advised to seek shelter immediately. >> so bottom line, this area even flooded in the canals after hurricane harvey which mainly struck texas. so the idea of a direct hit on cape coral i think is terrifying. emotionally to you, how do you feel with it approaching? >> well, we're a little nervous. but we're very prepared for this. we're doing the best we can. and yeah, personally we're all a little nervous. we have family and friends here. but we feel confident at our level of preparedness and our

action plan going forward. so just a matter of how bad the storm hits, how strong those winds are. and how much flooding you have on these streets after the hurricane arrives. >> so chris, you know, they are doing everything they can to get every last person out. cape coral has one shelter already at capacity. and you guys have opened another one. >> i believe they have. >> yeah, cape coral.net/hurricane. >> okay. if you are in this area, get information on evacuations on shelters. chris, it's quite a sight to see. both half empty streets and yet it seems residents are coming out on every block we're on. >> and i don't want to put him in an awkward situation and i understand the frustration. but when i look at him and the other first responders, what i think of when i see people who are still there is that they may have to go out and put themselves in danger after the storm because you need to be

rescued. and i wonder if that is frustrating to him as he sees people who are refusing to leave. >> yeah, so -- chris jansing is asking is it frustrating to that you ultimately you may have to come and try to on rescue these people? you were telling meet fire department has boats for situations like this. is it frustrating to you that the people that we're passing by right now made make your job harder in the end? >> it's not frustrating. but a little disheartening. we don't want to have to come rescue them. we want them to be safe. if we have to by any means necessary, we will come out to help. but, no, it's not frustrating in that manner. it makes you sad. >> reporter: and not something that you often hear from firefighters. raw emotion, real stuff, chris. they just want people to save their own lives before they have

to say their lives and potentially in a very dire situation. >> yeah, and he's pointed out this is his community, his family is there, too. jacob soboroff, thanks to all the folks out there trying to get everyone prepared and get them to a safe place. also miami beach under a mandatory evacuation. that area seeing signs of the storm's impending wrath with strong winds ripping down trees. my mya rodriguez is joining me. how have things changed? >> reporter: originally we were on a barrier island called rick backer e rickenbacker. now we're in the brickle area of miami. both financial sdwrikt adistric lot of highrises. and if you look, it's a ghost town. about an hour ago, full of people taking selfies, taking a look at the bay. now the wind is picking up, squalls moving through. it has been raining here

consistently. this is so different from what kerry sanders was seeing on the west coast. here we are seeing the effects of irma. we can actually see one of these squalls kind of making their way over here. that is miami beach fisher eye lafrnd, t islands, port of miami. when it comes through, it's basically whiteout conditions. from what we gather from people here, there are miami reads, they decided not to leave and just decided to see what the situation was. a lot of these people went through hurricane andrew. we spoke to one gentleman. here's what he had to say. >> we've had direct hits before. i came here just as andrew hit, so that was my first time here and we've had many misses before, so we've been pretty lucky. i guess it's just a matter of time before we get a hit. just boarded up and been sitting there two days looking at the tv. so thought we'd come out and see it firsthand. >> reporter: but just in the few hours that we've been out here, would he have really seen a change in biscayne bay.

the water has gotten remarkably choppier as one would expect as irma makes its way here. by the way, eventually we will also be inland because it wouldn't be safe here because of the storm surge. and there is a curfew here in the city of miami. starts at 7:00 p.m. so we will make our way out of city as that comes. >> mya rodriguez, thank you and be safe. joining me on the phone is philip levine the mayor of miami beach. and i guess if there is a piece of good news, those folks who were on the shore taking selfies, some even in the water, all seem to have gone on. but clearly there are people who are staying behind. what is your message to them at this hour, mr. mayor? >> our message at this point is to hunker down and seek shelter. they should not be outside. this is the calm before the storm. although it's windy, we're getting squall, getting rain, we know later in the evening and throughout the night, this is going to be a still powerful

storm. we geexpect hurricane-force. and people need to take it seriously. my thoughts go out for cape coral, all of our friends on the western side of florida that seem to be more in the track. and i can tell you one thing, if they are to get hit by this what i call nuclear storm, miami beach, we'll help send our resources there to help those cities. >> what is your biggest concern right now, mayor? >> biggest concern is a couple things. number one, people being daredevils and being outside and thinking this is a joke. and god forbid they get hurt because our first responders will be huchk ere hunkered down get above 40 miles per hour. and biggest concern is the storm surge. we understand how destruction stiff floodi destructive flooding can be. but this could be serious and of course destructive to our city. >> last numbers i heard were about 37,000 of your residents without power. what is the latest number you have? >> miami beach, that is not us. you're probably thinking more of

all of miami-dade county. but in miami beach right now, so far we've had very, very few power outages. but we expect the power to go out of course as the wind picks up and of course as the tropical storm starts moving in and of course some hurricane winds. that will cause the power to go out more than likely. >> are people still evacuate willing, are people still trying to get out? >> no, absolutely not. as of last night when the bus service stopped, we told everyone at this point hunker down. find shelter. it's literally not the time to go to our shelters. but you'll see the streets are barren. i've been all over the city all day and will continue to do so. you still see people out there, but it's a mandatory evacuation, but unfortunately, certain people do not want to listen. but we have a curfew we invoked at 8:00 tonight which will be on for the next three nights in miami beach. 8:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. miami bleach police department will be enforces this. >> what kind of resources do you

have standing by for any possible scenario, mayor? >> well, we have a skel cal staff that will be right at point sinai where i will be and have been all day. that is our command staff center. it's a hurricane-proof building. and the majority of our resources are in miami across the bridge. clearing the roads is the first step after the storm hits. >> mayor levine, whatever happen, our thoughts and prayers are with you. and thank you throughout this, you have been so terrific in spending your time to let everybody know what is going on and giving them such good guidance. we appreciate it, mayor. >> thank you. a cone of uncertainty remains. the southwest coast of florida on edge after hurricane irma's track changes course. check out this video of cars lined up for miles in tampa if we have that video. we're live in naples next where residents are desperately seeking shelter with just hours left to go.

but first, a look at some of the thousands of businesses in south florida boarded up in anticipation of those intense winds and potential storm surge of hurricane irma.

33 past the hour. we're just michbtss from gettnu the latest update on hurricane irma. the latest track puts the west coast right in irma's path. more than 50,000 are in shelters like this one. look at that line. but the scene there is different than we saw in cuba where more than a million people were evacuated. but many of them went to underground military bunkers like this. these were dug more than 20 years ago when the cuban government was convinced that the u.s. would attack the

islands. calipari paerry is with me andn how bad the storm surge can get. >> and we're looking at tampa bay. this is one of the more recent models and you can see that that water will really come in on shore right here. we heard from jacob soboroff. you've seen this before. this is the storm surge map again looking specifically at tampa bay. and this is a scenario that the government there has run through. in 2010, they did a mock storm calmed phoenix with winds up it 150 miles per hour and they found that there would be mastiff flooding all in here.lmt 150 miles per hour and they found that there would be mastiff flooding all in here.ed 150 miles per hour and they found that there would be mastiff flooding all in here. so if you were in these area, should you have already evacuated. a lot of people are trying to get out now. and when you look at some of the points on this map, you can see where the dankser lger lies.

for example the hospital, air force base, tampa bay international armtirport is rig here. this area shore acres has seen an explosion in real estate, a lot of new people coming in and keep in mind, this is an area where there are over 60 retirement homes. so we'll keep a close eye on tampa bay as we move forward. and as you heard the governor say, this is your number. if you are in tampa still and looking to get out, call this number or go to the disaster websites from the state of florida and they will try to get you out. >> thank you so much. murd hour by hour, the impact of hurricane irma is intensifying. as wech said, nearly 7 million told get out. and the shift west means increased threat in destruction stiff storm surge in places like marco island, ft. myers and naples which is where we find jeff patterson. how bad is the storm surge there

expected to be? all rig >> reporter: they are expecting a strong storm surge. i'm from tampa, so that is where my friends and family are right now. a lot of people are concerned. here naples, they have been boarding up and they are ready for the storm. we spoke to the mayor, and he told us that they are as ready as they can be. i spoke a little whiling a go to the director of the eoc and they have 11,000 collier county residents in 30 evacuation centers right now. some of them are just bare bones. they had five primary evacuation centers if i would up quickly. those are the ones with red cross volunteers, the ones with nurses. at an elementary school, there was a long line. they let a few dozen into the evacuation center and then asked them to leave. they are concerned that that elementary school cannot make it through a category 5.

and there was a little bit of panic as people were leaving. we saw people driving down the wrong side of the road just so they could try to make to the next evacuation center. we've talked to a lot of people and we started out this morning in miami. we were at homestead yesterday where of course hurricane andrew had major impact and people there extremely concerned. i spoke to a woman in naples who was crying because she's just so worried about it. but i will tell you, they have been through hurricanes before. if you look across the street at the boarding over there, that is from previous hurricane. it says go away george. other writings say go away irma. certainly people having that mindset. there is just a lot of anxiety here in naples and even north all the way to tampa as everyone wonders exactly where irma will come on shore. and as you mentioned, it's all a matter of timing and direction of the storm as to where the storm surge goes and where the

major ecimpact of the winds wil be. >> it will happen very soon within a matter of hours. jeff patterson, thanks for your report. safety to your family i hope. we'll be thinking about all of you folks. and wherever it lands, the storm is expected to cause that dangerous storm surge. take a look at the waves. they are already whipping the coast of myself. we'll go live there to check on conditions as the outer bands of the storm begin to move in. and as we head to a break, check this out. dolphins air lifted to safety in cuba ahead of irma's landfall there. six dolphins had to be removed from an aquarium and taken by helicopter to the southern part of the country. are

. a live look at ft.

lauderdale. the wichbd winds are picking eye on miami. swrid i don't showing strong winds there, as well. waves ahead of hurricane irma's landfall. joining me now is sam champion. sam, what are you looking at there? >> reporter: well, we've been trying to show folks a little bit around the miami area. we just came off the beefach. along the beach, we saw a lot of tree limbs down. so already in a couple of the wind bursts, we've had some tree damage. came here because i wanted to show you some of the bridges in the dancistance. that is the bridge that goes to brick he wiell key. and beyond that, that goes in to key biscayne. the big concern here is when to shut the bridges down because when you get that tropical storm force winds at about 35, 40 miles per hour, it's not safe to

drive on those brinldges. let's show you what is going on with the hurricane. when i show you this satellite image, you'll see what we're tarking about. look at that giant swirl. the big white clouds pulling the moisture across south florida. and wrapping it around in the hurricane. we've been watching the storm that was dragging most of the day yesterday and evening through the night all across the cuba coastline waiting for it to finally pop out and make that move and say okay, we're moving across the florida straits on our way to the keys. lost a little strength during that interaction with the coastal area, the northern coast of cuba, the cuba key area. now we'll watch the warm water restrengthen that hurricane. hurricane center says it will be a cat 4. so we'll expect that it will maintain that strength as a cats 4. as it works toward the keys sunday at about 8:00 a.m. so the idea is that sunday by 8:00 a.m., we have the land falling hurricane moving right across the southern most part of

the keys. now, watch this track go on up. we're still the big question is sunday by 8:00 p.m., do we touch land with the center of that storm right around ft. myers or do we continue the jog up toward tampa. and tampa as you've been discussings bay, tampa bay, everything is about the position of that hurricane. the better position for everyone in that area is to already have the storm on shore and not have it pass offshore. offshore, they get the strong solid push of water right into p tampa bay. if that storm is on shore, they don't get the worst part moving that water. still going to be a problem for tampa bay. but we're hoping that the system is already onshore by that time. let's talk about the waters and why it would strengthen. everyone is going why wouldn't it just stay a cat 3 good it has weakened over cuba. it has the warm water temperature, 87, 89 degrees the

last check. so very close to 90 degrees. so as you move that's what is left of that's and it's still holding together over that very warm water, it redevelopments and restrengthens. and that is why the hurricane center believes that it will be a cat 4 when it makes contact with the keys. >> and where you are in miami, when will they see the worst of it? >> we're going to get it in bands. as soon as that storm starts to move close to the keys, we're getting if you would-on tropical storm to hurricane-force winds all day. but at this point when we showed you the satellite image, you could see the streaking white clouds across. we've been watching the radar very carefully and just got a band through here of very heavy rain. that will happen periodically now throughout the rest of the day and the evening. and it's in those bands that we're earn canned that people on the east coast will get injured. we already have about 7,000 power outages in broward county in for the lat. lauderdale area. with them, they will carry some

very strong gusty wirnds, heavy rain. that could kocould be tree limb lines down. so we don't want you to wander around even though you're talking mostly about the impact on the west coast. still a very broad circulation with the storm and if you are out and doubt at the wrong time and one the rain bands comes in, you will really feel it. >> people on the east coast should not feel com place ents. sam champion, thank you so much. gstaatti schwartz is in a c driving. what is going on? >> reporter: yeah, that's right. this is one of the critical roads into the keys. a little bit earlier you were interviewing the governor, the governor was talking about how just one of these roads, one of these bridges going out was going to be a catastrophic because it would be dipgt getting and i had in and out of keys. if we just show what is going on in front of us, that is the

storm surge over there on the right of the screen. a couple hours ago the water was not this high. i have this other phone and if we can, i'm just going to show you, we'll roll downs window, so pardon the wind here. it's very windy. but if we can punch that up, you can see what has already happened. the fence is already starting to come down. again, the storm is still quite a ways out, over 100 miles on out. but starting to see storm surge come up. right now it's high tide, so the water should be a little high, but not this high. so this is something that we're seeing that is looking like pretty abnormal. the rocks are here to ekt proper t proerkt t protect the road. but if the waves are able to eat the road away, again this is the only way in and out when going out to key larlargo, to key wes so this road is extremely critical.

this is something that law enforcement is watching. we saw highway patrol officer come down kind of assess the situation. and this is a road that will be watched all night because this is going to dictate what happens in all of the he keys. in fact we're watching the road as well because when the water comes up, we'll have to fall back for the mainland. but you see the water is just already coming unit and the force of this storm still has yet to bear down on where we're at. >> basically just a ghost town where you are? >> yeah. a little while ago we were in key largo and there are people there, but for the most part, everybody is hunkered down, still tying down their boats, securing their homes. and if you look in front of me, if we can punch that camera up, you see this is an open road. right now there is no one on this road except for us. so if there are people in key largo, they can get out right now. and all of the keys in fact, all of the keys are passable getting back to the mainland.

but for now, this area is under mandatory evacuation and so people are being encouraged to get to the mainland and get to safety. >> gatti schwartz, thank you so much. and joining us on the phone is miami native cherry ben difficult smart. she's hungeredkered down with h partner and dog at a miami shelter. how are you doing? >> i'm doing well. >> give us an idea of what it's like where you are. set the scene for us. >> well, it's a huge exhibition hall on the fairgrounds. and there is about 2100 people here in one room. everybody is kind of carving out their own little section for their family. and then to get into this shelter, you have to have a pet. and there were about 500 dogs here and about 600 animals in all. so they take birds, cats,

gerbils and whatever you might have. >> well, that is good because we know that our pets are our family. but it sounds like it could be a little chaotic. how are things being handled there? >> it's a red cross shelter and i have to say that for the most part, things have been handled pretty well. the first night was a little rough because it was all night long people coming in. we were here thursday. over the p.a., they are sinkigi happy birthday. but -- as it fills out, it gets difficult. but they have large bathrooms and today we had mres. first two days we had cooked food. but we take our dogs out. i stayed out basically all day for two days because the weather

was good. and i was able to keep him outside. and now we can't take them out anymore. the last time i was out, it was real windy and it was raining a little bit. but it has rained hard from time to time. so i guess those outer bands are hitting us now. >> i'm looking at some of the phone video that you sent us. and thank you for that. but it looks like people are doing okay. it seems like a pretty calm atmosphere. are you making friends there, are you talking to people, are you seeing folks you know? >> not really seeing anyone that i know because i came 15 miles west in order to come to this pet shelter. but you know, of course we're talking to people. you have to when you're standing

in line for everything. and we're getting to know people and telling stories. a lot of people are telling stories about how they survived hurricane andrew and, you know, so we're staying entertained. and it is pretty calm. you know, nobody is getting upset and people are kind and helpful in general. >> so are you feeling okay? i mean, the storm did take a turn to the west. it is possible and we still don't know exactly what is going to happen where you are. but it does look like it's not as bad as some people thought maisch a few days ago. it could be in the miami area. how are you feeling about things right now? >> well, i feel safe here. i don't think there will be a problem here. i'm concerned about, you know, like i said, i live 15 miles from here, so i'm concerned about allege i going to be able to get home once we leave

because of debris or wires or whatever being in our path. and concerned about my house which is a little wooden house. in coconut grove. so i'm just hoping it survives well. and that we'll be hole within a day or two. >> we thank you for taking the time to talk to us. let us know how you're doing. >> okay. i'm here with my husband, so -- >> not your partner, your husband. >> no his name is jimmy. >> how long have you and jimmy been married? >> we've been together for 20 years. married for 14. >> 14 years. so this is just another adventure in that nice long marriage. >> yes, it is. >> well, good luck to you both. and is it a dog that you brought with you? >> yes, i have a dog named zeke. he's 14 years old. and my sister-in-law, deloris, is with us, as well. >> well, best to all of you and

good luck. >> thanks very much. >> thank you, cherry. >> so she's okay and they have power there and they have food there even though she said that they are now going to mres, meals ready to eat. so delicious. but they are being well taken care of. thousands though already without power. tropical storm-force winds have been causing some damage downing trees in south miami heights. you heard from sam champion, he saw some limbs down. next what help will be available for florida with aid already stretched thin from hurricane harvey?

after a natural disaster hits months often years of recovery are just beginning. joining me, former director of the office of u.s. foreign disaster assistance. thank you so much for being with

us. your former organization does disaster response for some of the worst crises around the world. in the case of irma, what would be the priorities? >> the immediate priority is exactly what you have been talking about and seeing is tha and that is getting people oift harm's way. i responded to a typhoon in the philippines and the storm surge caught people off guard. it's important for people to respect the storm surge because that really acts like a bulldozer just pushing everything out of its way and often that is underestimated. once the storm has passed through, obviously the first priority is search and rescue and then it moves on to restoring basic services. >> you published a blog post yesterday saying that the u.s. works hard on immediate aid but lacks with long term recovery. what is your concern with this storm? >> because most of the bankrupt wi

brunt will be taken by florida, i think we'll get the balance better.upt brunt will be taken by florida, i think we'll get the balance better. we do better domestically. international responses, we're excellent in the initial and thens rebuilding is more of a struggle. >> right now the agency that you used to run has disaster assistance response teams on the ground in the crib yachb. they are in haiti, bahamas, all of them delivering humanitarian aid. but with what is going on in texas and florida, what do you say to people -- and i know you have heard this -- who request the u.s. sending resources abroad when they are so direly needed at home? >> well, i think that we can walk and chew gum at the same time. the annual budget for the office that i used to run is about $1.5 billion a year. the aid package that congress just passed for harvey alone, never mind whatever will be coming for irma, is several multiples of the annual budget of that entire office. so we're not talking huge sums of money here relatively speaking. and it does a tremendous amount

of good. >> well, jeremy, thank you so much for being with us. and you know, hats off to all the folks who do this work because they do it often unheralded. it is tough stuff. we appreciate it. and we are coming up on 5:00 p.m. on the east coast. i'm chris jansing in new york. about 12 hours before we expect hurricane irma to make landfall over the florida keys. from there, forecasters expect the storm to barrel right into florida's west coast. the storm surge in some areas could reach 15 feet. and while irma may not arrive until tomorrow, florida governor rick scott has ordered more than 6 million floridians to evacuate. more than 50,000 are already in shelters. and the governor issued a warning to residents who were tell unsure if they would leave their homes. >> if you have been ordered to evacuate anywhere in the state, you need to leave