this morning on "world news now." hurricane irma takes aim, getting closer and closer to the american coast, with miami now bracing for direct hit. the category five storm has already taken lives as it barrels over the caribbean. we have team coverage, and we'll go live to accuweather for the latest forecast. >> and that hurricane is already making history with its strength and longevity. so what makes it so powerful and so dangerous? and new this half hour, five former and living presidents making the one-america appeal. >> they're all coming together to call on americans to support the hurricane

we'll tell you all about it. and it was the announcement that caught fans by surprise. the so-called kissing bandit from a lifetime ago on "the bachelorette" has been named as the new bachelor. what do we know about this guy? we'll have full details in "the skinny," it's friday, september 8. from abc news, this is "world news now." and a good morning to you all. we'll get to our coverage on hurricane irma in just a moment. but we're going to start with breaking news. a powerful earthquake has hit off mexico's pacific coast. >> it was centered offshore on the border with guatemala. >> the shaking was felt so strongly there that residents ran outside, many in pajamas. there are scattered power outages in the mexican capital and we'll continue to monitor the breaking story. now to irma, the killer storm is taking aim at florida. e

extending 75 miles out from the center are the winds. >> many roads in the u.s. virgin islands are blocked or flooded. these are new images from st. thomas. >> at least 14 deaths are blamed on the storm. linzie janis is in puerto rico. >> reporter: the biggest problem here, power outages. nearly a million people still without power. and this is the main reason why. there are hundreds and hundreds of trees like this one down. this one has a power line in it. hurricane irma claimed three hours in puerto rico, but elsewhere in the caribbean t was much more destructive. we spoke with u.s. coast guard pilots who were doing rescue missions to the u.s. virgin

they introduced us to two young women, college students who were rescued from st. thomas. we spoke to them. their names alex demore and maddie gortat. they were worried the roof was going to come off the home they were in. when the storm was over, they went outside to survey the damage. they described utter destruction, but alex slipped and fell, hitting her head, she was in and out of consciousness, but they couldn't get to a hospital on the island. they were forced to call the coast guard and wait for the following morning for rescue. we lent them our phones to call family. and we were able to accompany them to the hospital. while we were there, the backup generator actually failed. so the power outages, a huge problem here. nick and diane? >> thank you very much. the latest track shows irma taking a direct hit on miami before it moves north over land. >> many are driving, and that means traffic on highs into georgia was three teams the usual volume.

>> and airports are packed with people desperately hoping to catch flights out of the storm zone. this radar image shows planes flying around irma. major operations are suspending by tonight. we have more on the mass exodus. >> started crawling. we're stopped right now. >> reporter: heavy traffic clogging major florida highways. >> we're just trying to get out of harm's way, get ahead of the storm. >> reporter: as more than a million floridians are asked to >> i know many of you have stuck in traffic. evacuations are not meant to be convenient. >> reporter: officials in key west telling residents staying behind is dangerous and irresponsible. some flee by shuttle bus to a miami shelter. on the only road out of the keys, people abandoning their

hoping to avoid flooding. many on the road facing fuel shortages. nearly 39% of gas stations in miami and ft. lauderdale are out of gas. 44% out in gainesville too. officials urging gas stations to stay open as long as possible. to help people get out. using police escorts to get fuel in faster. several hospitals evacuating too, one airlifting patients in a c-130 to a hospital in alabama. take a look at that one road out of the keys. it is practically empty, because so many people have already left. gio benitez, abc news, key west. georgia and south carolina are also on alert, watching whatever path irma may take. >> justin povick is here with more on the track. >> irma, a very large hurricane. i want to stress the size of this hurricane. very, very large. so the impacts will not be felt over a teeny area but well

beyond that. so we're talking about widespread impacts. the movement taking it through the turks and caicos islands. devastating impacts through the next several hours. throughout the southern bahamas. the tropical storm force winds well out here. and the hurricane-force winds will cover much of the state as well. as we get to saturday night and sunday. that's when the worst will be impacting florida. as we are talking about landfall around miami. that's the most likely scenario at this point. nick, diane? >> and justin, how strong is it going to be when it hits miami? category four? >> category four, category five. both are extremely powerful. >> and with so many people near there in florida, what do you expect for the other parts of

the state? is there an agreed-on trajectory? >> this is not a good scenario. there could potentially be a second landfall as we get toward georgia or even toward the coastal carolinas. it's something we'll continue to monitor closely. not a good situation at all. >> all those areas, we're watching that closely. and many in florida are also leaving their homes. some of the shelters in south florida are already full. >> one shelter in pompano beach reached capacity less than three hours after opening. emergency officials warn the longer people wait to seek shelter, the more difficult for them to find it. >> and for now, florida's amusement parks are operating under normal conditions. and they have no plans to shut down or change hours. but disney world, universal orlando and sea world say that could change depending on irma's path.

reschedule for those who decide not to come this weekend. their policies are posted on their respective websites. and more on irma, how this storm became the most-powerful ever in the atlantic. turning now to other news. donald trump jr. has declared that his meeting with congressional investigators fully satisfied their inquiry. staffers questioned the president's some for five hours behind closed doors. he told them he took the meeting with the russian lawyer because he wanted to find out about hillary clinton's fitness for office. he said he did not tell his father about the meeting. and democrats are now calling for him to testify in public. and u.s. analysis of north korea's recent military test shows the blast was more powerful than first reported. the blast produced an explosive yield of 140 kilotons. for comparison, the u.s. bomb that destroyed

end of world war ii measured just 15 kilotons. the president is not ruling out military action against north korea, but says he would prefer not to do that. all five living presidents are coming together to call on americans to support hurricane relief efforts. officials say every dollar donated will help hurricane victims. >> hurricane harvey brought terrible destruction but also brought out the best in humanity. >> as former presidents, we wanted to help our fellow americans again to recover. >> our friends in texas, including bush 43 and 41. they're doing just that. >> people are hurting down here, but as one texan put it, we've got more love in texas than water. >> we love you, texas. >> donate to one america appeal.org. we are all in this together. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> and president trump also showed his support for the effort. he tweeted out, we will confront any challenge, no matter how

water. i'm proud to stand with the presidents. >> it's impressive to all have of them together. and it shows the magnitude of the situation facing much of the country. >> coming up, former white house press secretary sean spicer makes a big announcement about his future, and it involves abc. but first, hurricane irma already making history. what makes it so dangerous as it takes aim at florida. "world news now" weather, brought to you by crest white strips. "world news now" weather, brought to you by crest white strips. weren't perfect, but ugh. an i knew they oh well! all hope is lost. oh, thanks! clearly my whitening toothpaste is not cutting it. time for whitestrips. whitening toothpaste only works on the surface. but crest 3d white whitestrips safely work... below the enamel surface... ...to whiten 25x better than a leading whitening toothpaste. hey, nice smile! thanks! i crushed the tissue test. yeah you did! crest whitestrips.

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hurricane irma has weakened slightly with its maximum winds now at 160 miles per hour. but it is still a dangerous category five storm. and right now it's heading between cuba and the bahamas. hurricane force winds can be felt as far as 75 miles from the center of the storm. and the huge storm surge is also a very real danger to both areas. the u.s. consulate general in curacao says it believes about 6,000 americans are stranded on st.

this morning we're finding out what's making irma so powerful and dangerous. rob marciano has more from key largo, florida. >> reporter: irma's first strike giving us a glimpse of its sheer power. morphing into a monster with a rare combination of conditions, moist air over deep, warm water with temperatures over a degree above average feed the storm. there's also a lack of upper-level winds that would choke the storm. it has avoided large land masses that would break apart the hurricane. >> it is like going over a giant all you can eat buffet for a hurricane right now. >> reporter: the eye 30 miles wide with it 600 miles

to an ef-3 tornado. the record-breaking stretch of 185 mile-mile-per-hour sustained winds for over 36 hours. hurricane irma continues to churn to the u.s. as a remarkably strong hurricane and florida is preparing for the worst. most of the coastal communities especially here in the southern part of the state under mandatory evacuation orders. we expect a storm surge of 7-10 feet. that would certainly bring the water up and over my head. the fluctuation of track has everyone on edge and most people are prepared. most have made their way on the road if they're not staying at home. and most of those shouldn't. rob marciano, abc news, key largo, florida. >> you definitely don't want to ride out this storm. they say not to tape the windows, it doesn't do much good. never run a generator indoors or use a charcoal or gas grill indoors. huge carbon monoxide risks there. and don't walk in floodwaters. they can hide all sorts of things, snakes, power lines,ou

when we come back, the big news from janet jackson about her stop in houston. "the skinny" is next. jackson about her tstop in houston. "the skinny" is next.

♪ i miss you much ♪ i really miss you much ♪ i miss you much >> janet, we miss you too. pour for janet fans who do miss her much. there's good news. there were rumors that janet jackson's concert in houston was possibly being called off. jackson says fear not, she'll be there. >> she took to instagram to tell her fans directly, she will attend her tour date despite hurricane harvey. plus, she says she has something special for hurricane victims. >> i'm here to tell you that we're going to do the show in houston, but we're going to roll in early, because we

visit some of the shelters. and not just visit some of the shelters. we also want to do something special for the victims. so i will see you friday. >> so jackson is set to take the stage saturday night at houston's toyota center. meanwhile, beyonce, barbra streisand and oprah will headline a one-hour telethon for victims of hurricane harvey. >> the event will be simulcast live on september 12th on abc and other networks, on tape delay for the west coast, streamed on facebook, youtube and twitter. next, what we're learning this morning about the newest bachelor. >> so fans were a little surprised when they learned on gma this morning that arie luyendyk jr. was announced as the new bachelor. he was a 35-year-old contestant in 2012. and he was best known for his nickname, "the kissing bandit." >> since then, he's turned into

a bit of a silver fox. the tousled do is making him the first silver bachelor. >> what do you make of this? >> welcome to the club, i guess. silver is in this next season on abc. >> was that an audition, jack? were you applying? >> no, by no means, i'm not. i was, in my research, i came up with this line, arie told someone here at abc that he has not been in love since emily. >> oh, well. >> so these women have their work cut out for them. >> jack is debuting, he had a haircut today, jack. >> i did. i didn't get a haircut, i got them all cut. >> ooh! >> take that for what it's worth. >> it was an emotional -- >> blow-by-blow coverage of arie on theac

we're moving on! >> it was a very emotional first day of school for prince george. >> it was. he was guided by the steady hand of his dad. prince william. mom of course indisposed with an acute bout of morning sickness. >> he looked a little apprehensive as he approached the first day of school. but later on, all smiles, kicking up his heels. check him out with dad. >> he's not going to be called his royal highness. he's just george cambridge. >> just hey, you? >> he's cute. >> he is cute. >> he's cute, yeah. finally! former white house press secretary sean spicer will soon be showing up on late night tv. >> oh, yeah. spicy will be making his late night debut right here on abc with jimmy kimmel next wednesday night. >> it will be spicer's first

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dads don't take sick days... dads take dayquil severe. the non-drowsy, coughing, aching, fever, sore throat... ...stuffy head, no sick days medicine. we're watching as hurricane irma barrels to the coast of florida. it's been leading this week's headlines across the board. >> and another threat from the other side of the planet has also been heating up. and now here is our weekly friday rewind. >> in south korea, a show of force. f-15 fighter jets practicing bomb drops, live maneuvers simulating an attack. this country's response to north korea's latest launch. kim jong un wants a full-fledged nuclear capability, and right now nothing is slowing him down.

>> i have blood all over me. and there's a bloody knife on the bed. >> 28-year-old matthew phelps is behind bars, arrested and charged with murder in connection to the death of his wife. saying he took over-the-counter medication to help sleep hours before. >> video going viral. a nurse under arrest, after refusing an officer's request to draw a patient's blood. >> i can safely say that i think any nurse this entire country would have done the same thing. >> i was right here. >> a state of emergency as crews battle a wildfire burning in america's second-largest city. >> it's the largest fire by acres within the city of los angeles. >> hurricane irma closing in on the american coast. that is irma tearing across the island of anguilla. a

winds of 175 miles per hour. >> backlash growing over president trump's major decision to end the immigration program protecting nearly 800,000 so-called d.r.e.a.m.ers. >> no second thoughts. >> princess kate and prince william announcing they're expecting their third child. we're looking around for someone british to cover this story, and we found nick watt. >> so offensive. >> a new season of "dancing with the stars" is getting started. we now know which celebrities will be joining this season. >> they were on gma. i was in the green room, oh, what is this? what this is? no, no, no! >> i like how you were trying to get a serious story. >> there i was with him earlier, i'm so cool. actually, i'm a flapper. that wasn't your plan? you weren't expecting that one?

i'm glad you just decided to mock me anyway. >> isn't that what i'm supposed to do? >> i suppose so. >> it's been great having you here.

making news in america this morning, bracing for a direct hit. overnight a shift in hurricane irma's track. >> i'm just trying to get as far north as possible. >> florida now in what's being called a worst case scenario. >> this is a catastrophic storm that our state has never seen. >> this morning areas on both sides of the peninsula under hurricane warning. >> every florida family must prepare to evacuate regardless of the coast you live on. >> the time to prepare and evacuate is shrinking as some of the state's shelters are already filling up. >> she just said they're full. i don't know where we're going to go. >> plus, what's left of some caribbean islands. >> the entire country has been