this morning on "world news now." hurricane irma is battering florida throughout the night with more wind, rain and damage. >> we're tracking the storm as it moves north, hitting areas that haven't seen a hurricane like this in nearly a century. it is monday, september 11th. from abc news, this is "world news now" >> hurricane irma has been downgraded to a category one storm, but the danger is not over yet. >> it is still packing 85-mile-per-hour winds as it pushes through northern florida and unleashing dangerous gusts. >> 4.5 million customers have lost power and many hard-hit

communities are bracing for more flooding. >> reporter: so we are on, i would call it the good side, you know, they always refer to the east side of the storm as the dirty side, because it's rainier. but the eye is almost even with us. but east. so we're seeing a little bit calmer wind at this point. the real concern here is the storm surge. so how high will that storm surge be? we saw that water earlier today tra drain from the bay and push out into the gulf. that water will be pushed back into the bay. how quickly will that come back in, what will that storm surge look like, what will that look like for the barrier islands. a lot of the barrier islands are low-lying areas. you probably have been seeing me in the area covering flooding. but when you think about the

rain they've gotten today plus the storm surge, these houses, it won't take much to put some water on the road. and we are expecting to see a little bit of ponding on the road. we're already seeing water sitting on the low edges of the road. so we'll have to see what that storm surge does as far as what that means for those houses. not quite a complete, you know, sigh of relief here yet. but people are feeling very optimistic that their homes will be okay, at least in this area, guys. >> eva, thank you. and before moving up florida's west coast, it hit ashore in the keys, as a category four storm. crews are evaluating bridges there before anyone will be allowed back into the keys. >> matt gutman is further north in naples with more on irma's destructive path. >> reporter: hurricane irma devouring florida, the storm making its first u.s. land fall

at cudjoe key. these storm chasers clocking winds at 117 miles per hour. the actual speed may have been higher. just before 10:00 a.m., a 94-mile-per-hour wind gust in miami. those gusts taller at the top of sky scrapers, snapping that crane and ripping off the roof of this apartment building. on the streets below, more than five feet of storm surge swamping downtown miami. >> at minutes pass, the flooding gets worse. >> reporter: the hurricane spawning at least three tornados, multiple homes damaged near melbourne, florida. >> mine's still standing but there's a lot of water coming in the house. >> reporter: that metal wrapped around the mailbox, splinters into the side of homes. the biggest danger is the storm surge. we've just received an urgent alert on our phone like

everybody else in naples that the storm surge is coming. the water has gone out toward the gulf of mexico, and officials say it's going to come back in with ferocity. it head its second land fall at marco island, now heading toward tampa. >> everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face. we're about to get puchlgsed in the face. >>esq everybody has a plan unti they get punched in the face. >> let's bring in meteorologist kelly ann cicalese. what can you tell us. >> it's weakening at this point. however, the bands pushing through on the north side of the system that are pushing really through northern florida. that is really the concentration where we're sieg teeing the sev weather. that tornado watch still up and in effect through the morning. that's in effect for northern florida and also extending into georgia as well.

so those bands, those are producing those four-inch-per-hour rainfall rates. and with the track this is following, it's likely going to continue to weaken down to a tropical storm in fact by later this afternoon and evening as it moves into georgia and likely as a depression for the tennessee area. we have several advisories right now. hurricane warnings still up in effect for much of florida. keep in mind, even though the eye right now is about 20 miles northwest of lakeland, florida, we're still seeing the extent of the winds all the way down into miami, 40-mile-plus per hour winds right now. it's going to continue to push northward, the strength of the winds where we see the eye, and as we move into the later afternoon and evening, the winds picking up to 55 to 60 miles per hour as it making its way through georgia. even though it is weakening, we're still seeing strong bands,

strong winds, but still significant enough to have damage on property. >> beyond the winds, you have some areas will get more than 12 inches of rain. >> absolutely. we're talking about likelihood of some areas seeing 15 inches of rain. there are flash flood watches that extend well northward through much of georgia, and there's that likelihood of inland flooding. that's a concern. there's that locally 15 inch mark, pushing into georgia. it's not only florida feeling the impact of the flooding, it's also much of georgia likely going to se going to see the impact. we'll see the transfer of florida feeling the brunt of it to georgia. i know a lot of people in florida fled to georgia. >> chasing some people, it seems. we're also hearing reports of a

tornado touching down in the daytona area. and we saw how wide that area is. is there one area that's more vulnerable or could it be anywhere along that path? ? really it's the northeast quadrant of the storm. as you look to the eye, look to the northeast of it, and that's where you're seeing the severity of the wind and also the severity of the storms pushing through. so the tornado watch, no surprise in northeast portions of floorerida into georgia. and jacksonville in particular, they'll have to watch. there have been several bands with the sheets of rainfall pounding them one after another. likely going to see some damage in that area. >> that might be the surprising area right there, jacksonville, florida, they might end up getting the most rain. and irma has already weakened significantly, but tampa was fearing a massive storm surge as the eye of the storm moved closer to that city. >> and we spoke with the mayor

of tampa as he was starting to feel the impacts of the storm. >> the wind is picking up. the rain is increasing. we obviously are tracking this storm like everybody else. you know. these are uncertain storms, and while it looks like it is improving for us, we are assuming that it will not. so we are prepped in a cat four mode. we have assets deployed. we have a plan. we have not had a direct hit in over 90 years, but that hasn't stopped us for planning for what we knew was inevitable, which is right now. >> imagine you're planning for flooding as well. >> we are indeed. parts of our city are low-lying. parts of our city are like a bowl. so they hold a lot of water. given the rain that will come, the wind that is pushing it up, the surge that will happen early, early this morning. we will have a high tide. yes, i fully anticipate that those areas along downtown,

harbor island will be affected to a greater degree than any place else. >> there were people who evacuated from the east coast thinking think were getting away from the storm and moved into its path. how are you dealing with the extra influx of people in the midst of all this? >> a lot of shelters have been opened by hillsboro county. but you're absolutely right. there were many hotels that had to turn people away. because once we put the evacuation notice out, some of them were in level-a flood zones, so they had to turn people away or turn people out. so yeah, it's been pretty disconcerting for a lot of folks from the east coast ever florida who came over here seeking refuge and then either had to flee or hunker down and hope for the best. >> the mayor of tampa there earlier this morning. and more than 16,000 power workers from outside florida are prepared to help get the lights back on in florida. >> that is the hope. at one point, we heard reporting

of more than 80% of florida power light customers had lost power. the company has trucks in position in the daytona beach area to try to restore service once irma passes. officials are estimating it could take weeks to get everyone back online. and major cruise lines are sending ships into the caribbean to try to help the islands devastated by irma. royal caribbean is devoting four ships to those efforts, sending fully stocked and staffed ships to hechlp. norwegian cruise lines is sending ships as well. a new threat from north korea. and we'll introduce you to the new ms. america. and do find us on wnn fans.com.

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us now. take a look at that. that is the roof of a building being blown off in the brickell section of miami in the downtown area as irma made its way inland. irma is menacing florida, even in its weakened state as a cat gore o catgory one storm. >> irma still could leave a trail of destruction after coming ashore. in naples, it ripped roofs right off of buildings, and tom llamas was there right in the thick of it. >> reporter: you can see the winds, how powerful it is, hurricane irma shredding ft. myers at this hour. just behind me was a metal stop sign. it's been ripped out of the post and it went flying behind my.

over here, it's a whiteout. very tough to see. you can see the line of the hurricane winds, it's an east to west wind, shredding those palm trees at this hour. david, i don't have a radar in front of me, but i don't need one. hurricane irma is right over us right now. we are a little more inland, a little more protected. and we're a little concerned because there's a marina across from us. and i'm a little concerned because of the projectiles. so we're going to move back inside. but at this hour, ft. myers is getting ripped apart. there's a curfew. it doesn't matter, you can't be in the streets right now. >> there's a curfew in many areas. >> and president trump has declared a disaster in florida. government funding will be available. 28 states have come forward to help in the effort. irma also ruined travel plans for thousands of people shutting down major airports all across florida. >> dozens of passengers remain

stranded at miami international airport. but they are said to be dry and safe and unaffected by leaks and flooding at the terminal. this is the first time the airport has closed since hurricane katrina. it is expected to reopen tomorrow with limited flights. but it is the biggest airport for international flights in this country. it is screwing up things all around world. >> it could have a big impact. speaking of flights, the u.s. government will resume evacuating citizens from st. martin. they're advised to be ready by noon. more than 1,000 have been evacuated. and some are sharing their stories about how they survived this storm only to face a gang of men who stormed their hotel with swords. >> bad situation there. coming up, the other headlines of the morning.

several people arrested during an antifascism rally in oregon. how police responded. the cowboys come out fighting against the giants. you're watching "world news now." clearasil rapid action begins working fast for clearly visible results in as little as 12 hours. but will it stop this teen from chugging hot sauce? ...oh jeremy. so let's be clear: clearasil works fast on teen acne, not so much on other teen things.

and on with the day's other news as we continue our coverage of hurricane irma. north korea is making another threat against the united states. this comes as the u.s. calls for

a vote at the u.n. today on new sanctions against kim jong un's regime. no word yet on if those measures will include a ban on gas and oil shipments. but north korea is saying they will make the u.s. pay a hefty price if more sanctions are approved. the death toll from the earthquake in mexico has reached triple digits. thousands of homes and hundreds of schools have been damaged or destroyed. hundreds of thousands of people are now without clean water. seven people have been killed in a shooting in a quiet neighborhood in plano, texas. officers responded to reports of shots fired. entered the home and confronted the suspected shooter. one officer opened fire killing the suspect. all were adults, it broke out during a football-watching party. an investigation is under way to determine a motive. and violence broke out between two opposing groups at

an anti-white nationalist valli in oregon. projectiles were thrown at officers. at least one officer was injured. police seized knives, construction tools and bricks from those protesters. today children of thousands of families in texas faked by hurricane harvey will have seats in their classrooms. the children of newly homeless families are heading back to school across houston after days of interruptions to the school year. they are allowing students to get their education in any school district they choose. and the first sunday night of nfl season saw the giants in texas. >> and what we did not see was giants wide receiver odell beckham jr. who was out with a leg injury. and new york's offense went without him. the only touchdown of the game was dak prescott's toss to jason witten. cowboys win it 19-3.

>> the other big contest being decided on sunday was ms. america. the winner was ms. north dakota. >> don't tell me! >> she beat 50 other women in five categories, including lifestyle, fitness, eveningwear, talent, interview and on-stage questions. >> he said that her mother is her greatest role model. she graduated from brown university and has been accepted into law school at notre dame. not bad at all. >> they spoke to ms. florida at the beginning of the pageant and she spoke about what it was like having a storm hitting while she was there, and she was glad to see her family safe and supporting her but sending a lot of love to her state saying florida strong. >> but they didn't give her the crown. >> no, it was not enough for her to get the crown. >> congratulations ms. north dakota. and it's so nice to be able to talk football and ms. america considering the news of the day. a tough one for many folks. coming up many so, zoom som

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rid-x helps break down waste. avoid a septic disaster with rid-x. hurricane irma is now northeast of tampa, but its winds and rain are still being felt in that area and further south. irma is weakening, though, as it moves over land. it's now a category one with maximum sustained winds of85 miles per hour. but the winds can be felt quite a distance from the center of the storm. because we're still talking about a massive system there. >> and the conditions at this early morning hour, live eastern time will continue to weaken throughout the morning. >> and a florida couple that tried to ride out the storm in a sailboat had to be rescued by sheriff's deputies. someone noticed them in des tress off palm beach. rescuers used a patrol boat. so dangerous trying to ride out

a storm like this in a boat. >> i can't imagine. many people did it in the key west air yeah. so a situation that some described as creepy took place. >> this is tampa bay after the storm sucked out a whole portion of the water there. you can see people walking around where that water usually is. police came over and told them get back on the sidewalk. the whole concept is called a reverse storm surge. and there's a reason the cops told them to get out of there. >> the wind blew it out to sea. but once the wind changed direction, the water surged back there, giving tampa bay its name once again. >> got to be careful walking out into those areas. but evacuations there weren't just for humans with irma on the way. >> flamingos at bush gardens in tampa had to be relocated. they marched two by two, getting the cue from noah.

they marched into a room where they're riding out the hurricane. >> it really looks like they're in a parade. the birds were just some of 12,000 animals that had to be sheltered before the storm. but makes for an interesting individual yes. a group of manatees got into some trouble. see the receding water here left them stranded. >> the people who found them were luckily able to drag them about 100 yards back into the water. wasn't easy. but wildlife officials did eventually get those manatees out to deeper water to try to prevent this from happening again. >> so ft. pierce, florida holds the record right now for most rain, nearly 15 inch. and despite that and the impending threat of hurricane irma wasn't enough to shut down the 7-eleven. some customers had come 30 minutes. and were thrilled to see the store open at all.

report from abc news. hurricane irma, shaking an entire state. >> the powerful storm is making a slow march up florida's spine. >> we're feeling the brunt of lu hurricane irma right now. >> the storm pummeling both coasts. >> naples under water. and a test for tampa this morning, not seeing a storm like this for nearly a century. >> we have, for 90 years avoided this day, but i think our day has come. >> this morning, millions are without power. >> whoa! >> and the dangers are far from over as millions more prepare for irma's punch. >> everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face. well, we're about to get punched in the face. >> the damage left behind. >> where irma is heading right now on this special edition of "world news now."

from abc news, this is world news now. >> and we do say good morning to everybody on this busy one. new information about the storm's track and the damage. >> here's the latest information. we have more than 4.5 million customers in florida without power. all the florida airports are closed. it could be days before they're all operating again. and the death toll from this storm is now at 31, with five of the deaths confirmed in florida. >> and hurricane irma is moving inland, east of tampa with winds up to 85 miles per hour. it is moving at a pretty good clip right now, north-northwest at 15 miles per hour. those hurricane force winds can be felt some 80 miles away. just within the last few moments, it has been downgraded to a category one storm, but that doesn't say much. it means the winds have died

down, but the powerful flooding situation extending well into southeast georgia. >> we're taking a look at the widespread flooding in the naples area. and officials are urging residents not to leave their shelters yet. you may think things have calmed down, but many roads are blocked by debris, and emergency crews do not want stranded cars in their way. they already have enough challenges to deal with. >> yeah, damage was so severe that officials fear they will find more fatalities today. they'll begin a house to house search in the morning, trying to assess the damage. power is out of course throughout the keys, and there may be problems with the water supply as well. many boats were wrecked or sunk. there were some people we're told rode out the storm in their boats, and streets have been flooded in the keys. >> the tampa area hasn't taken a direct hit from a hurricane in over 90 years. thankfully, the storm surge overnight has not been as high as feared.

most police and fire agencies are not responding to emergency calls overnight because it's too dangerous to go out on the roads. >> but as many people know, it doesn't take much for flooding concerns. matt smith of our tampa station joins us now. good morning, matt. >> reporter: those wind gusts continue to pick up here in tampa, and believe it or not, we said it earlier, this is actually one of the areas that isn't getting it as bad as some other parts. just the other side of the parking garage, where my photographer danny stricker is shooting safely so he can avoid some of these gusts. on the other side of this just in the corner, near north lewis and spruce in that corner, the wind is whipping even higher. the trees look like they're bending. when the gusts stop, you get a chance here, you can see the marriott behind me. this is blocking a lot of that wind. and i'll step to the side here, and danny can take a look here. when the wind picks up, it looks like a fire hydrant busting

around. and that's what we're getting, a lot of redirected wind because of the way the buildings are situated. it is good and safe for those inside of them. but a lot of people have taken shelter inside. we're not seeing people as much as earlier. i'm going to do this one last time. it's the last time we'll be doing it now that the winds are picking up. but it's an indicator of how strong these gusts are. when you try to pick these up against the wind, this is because it's wedged against my hip here. but you can see why these things initially fell off these palm trees in the first place. these palm fronds are going to become projectiles, like many other things. it's one of the many reasons we've been talking about it for days, why people had to really truly clean up. it is a dangerous situation out here and is only getting worse. keep our back to that moving forward here. you can see when the gusts kick

in here, you're seeing those lines of rain come across. you're seeing a lot of power behind this storm right now. that's why we're going to send it back to you. because i'm wrapping up for the evening. we're going to take cover the rest of the night. for now, reporting in tam parks matthew smith, abc action news. >> you can see the water coming down in sheets. >> and marci gonzalez experienced the same thing in the tampa area where the storm surge was not as rough as many feared. but it's still a rough morning for those in the bay. good morning, marci. >> reporter: hi, guys, good morning. the rain here has calmed quite a bit as you can see. but the wind is still a very big concern. so much so that fire rescuers here say if there is an emergency, they will not be able to respond, because it is just too dangerous. hurricane irma, battering the sunshine state.

wind gusts, topping 140 miles per hour, tearing the roof off this building. >> oh, my god! >> reporter: toppling trees and construction cranes. snapping power lines. first making landfall in florida in the keys, then again on the west coast. the monstrous storm impacting the entire state. streets flooded in miami. tornados touching down in central florida. >> i ran screaming through the glass door closed. >> reporter: and the major concern on the gulf coast, the storm surge, with the hurricane sucking water out of canals and tampa bay before sending it rushing it back in. >> everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face. and we're about to get punched in the face. >> reporter: in naples, neighborhoods under water but still a sigh of relief. >> we know that the storm surge

models of ten, eight to ten feet are likely not going to occur. we have dodged a bullet. >> reporter: at this shelter there, one of 500 open across the state. irma's fury on full display. cracking the front door and knocking out power. >> fand pandemonium. we were very scared, very worried. >> reporter: the number of those out of power is expected to climb. >> we'll start seeing rescue efforts getting under way, what do we expect on that front? >> reporter: well, they were initially expecting a storm surge of five to eight feet. that's why you're hearing all of that concern. now because irma weakened. they're saying that the storm surge could be half of that, even two to four feet. it could be even less. it's still too soon to know. as i was saying, it's still so windy that no one is out seeing what the conditions are, if anyone needs to be rescued.

they're going to wait until the sun comes up this morning to start to assess the situation more. >> that's marcy gonzalez. thank you so much. >> let's move on to kelly ann cicalese. who's our meteorologist from wcvb. >> we're still seeing very strong bands pushing through and moving northward. the bands with the heavy downpours that have us concerned. there's one band moving through. moving toward jacksonville right now is where we had the tornado watch up and in effect. and that extends into southern georgia as well. can you see that redness on the screen, that's indicating where we do see the threat of severe weather. moving along the track, tallahassee getting into this system as we move through the early morning hours.

it is going to likely weaken, though, of course it's interacting with the land. eventually as we move into the middle of the workweek it will be a remnant. wind gusts, it's the back side of the system that brings the wind. we'll have to watch that. even through to tomorrow we'll see wind gusts at 65 miles per hour at times. atlanta, 50-mile-per-hour wind gusts by monday evening. so we do have advisories up right now. still several. there are still hurricane warnings throughout much of florida. now that extends into southern georgia. tropical storm warnings and high wind warnings now extending into carolinas. and even touching some portions of virginia. this is a massive system. but more so, the wind impact is very high. it only takes 40 miles per hour

winds to see damage to a home. we're likely going to see it extending well into georgia and possibly into some western portions of the carolinas. >> some areas of atlanta seeing winds of 50 miles per hour. before hitting tampa, irma hugged the florida coast to the south. >> the storm surge left some is homes completely under water. we spoke with naples mayor bill barnett who said despite all that, it could have been much worse. >> we have a very early assessment of the damage that was caused. we've got flooding. >> the worst of the storm i know is past you, but the storm surge is the focus. you got quite a big rise earlier in the day. what's the latest on that now? >> if there is a bright spot in all of this, that's it. because the back of the storm broke up. and we actually had very minimal storm surge. it would have been catastrophic

had we got and, what was predicted, 12 to 15 feet. i heard predictions from 12 to 20 feet, but it did not happen. the only thing that we're dealing with now, or we will need to deal with in the next few days is the fact that, you know, that wind is out of the west and was bringing that water back in. and we've got a low tide coming up, which is good, but the problem is, if that wind is keeping some of that water, that's something, again, we have flooding, we have damage, we don't know what the extent is. but it could have been a lot worse. from the initial, what i've heard, is that no major structural damage, so we all might have some damage from trees and from, you know, things that probably blew around and might have done some damage, but i think that everybody, including myself, wants to get home you know and see what we're facing.

i don't think anybody lost a home or had it totally destroyed. so that is a positive note. >> positive note we will certainly appreciate right now. irma also ruined travel plans for thousands, shutting down major airports all across florida, miami, ft. lauderdale, orlando. >> dozens remain stranded. but they're said to be dry, safe, and unaffected by the leaks and flooding in the terminal. this is the first time the airport has closed since hurricane katrina. miami's airport is expected to reopen tomorrow with limited flights. >> they are still getting high winds in the area, because the storm is so big. still getting hit by some of those bands. we are keeping track of the storm for you. we'll have much more on hurricane irma coming up, including how people are riding out the storm as the shelters around them get damaged.

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we're back now with the breaking news, hurricane irma, a category one storm with winds up to 85 miles per hour in this early morning hour, and now lashing the tampa area as the storm heads into the central part of that state. now let's check in on some video from the area. check out that traffic light. it's showing one reason why drivers need to stay off the roads. that traffic light is hanging on by a single wire thanks to the strong winds there. and shelters are full, with travelers from the east coast thinking that's where they would be safe. >> and the path shifted a little bit, some people were turned away and had to keep moving. we get more from victor oquendo. >> reporter: from high school gyms to hockey arenas, families hunkering down. to wait out this storm. some 500 shelters sheltering more than 116,000 people now calling them home. here, this family got to this

community center in the nick of time. >> pandemonium, we were very scared. >> reporter: when the power went out, people watching through the window, about an hour later, the window shattering. they taped up the glass. they actually cleared out this whole area. this room was packed with people in awe, watching the winds pick up. nearly 400 people in this shelter alone, and that's not all. ray kretz takes us into a storage room, 120 pest in crates, including his own golden retriever, farley. >> nice to see those pets safe and invited into the shelter. >> you can kind of see the fear in farley's eyes. coming up next, what hillary clinton is saying about how donald trump became president. also pope francis injured. the other news of the morning, next. pope francis injured. the other news of the morning, next.

we're going to continue watching the path of hurricane irma, now a category one storm, but we do want to turn from that to other major headlines this morning. >> this morning is the 16th anniversary of the september 11 terror attacks. and president trump will preside over his first 9/11 ceremony as president. >> the first lady will join him at a commemoration later this morning at the pentagon. >> vice president pence will attend a separate ceremony in shanksville, pennsylvania. and here in new york, the annual reading of names will take place at ground zero. now president trump's former chief strategy, steve bannon has meanwhile taken aim at what he calls the republican establishment in his first television interview since leaving the white house. on 60 minutes, he declared wear on the gop leadership, accusing them of stonewalling president trump's agenda. >> the swamp is a business model. a permanent political class as

represented by both parties. you're not going to drain that in eight months, you're not going to drain it in two terms. it's going to take ten, 15, 10 years. >> the firing of james comey was, quote, the biggest mistake in modern political history. meanwhile, hillary clinton is opening up about president trump ahead of tomorrow's release of her memoir. she thinks president trump won the election by stoking racial grievances, in her words, among millions of white people. she confirmed she will not be running again. and the pope's final day in colombia got off to a bumpy start when he hit his head in the popemobile. but he did get bandaged up, continuing on with his full schedule with a bruise and black eye. and rafael nadal has won the u.s. open. for his 16th grand slam.

he won the french open as well. won the frenchow open as now. hey!

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rid-x helps break down waste. avoid a septic disaster with rid-x. some of the images there that we've seen since hurricane irma made land fall here in the u.s. >> we've been looking at some reporters, not only with our network but networks out there in some of the worst conditions, which can be tricky when you want to get out there and get the story out, but they have to watch for their own safety. and here's an example of some of the coverage we saw. >> this is exactly why we evacuated. we feared, these winds are really intense here. i don't have a radar in front of me, but i don't need one. hurricane irma is right over us right now.

we are a little more inland, a little more protected and a little concerned, because there's an arena across from us. and i'm a little concerned about the projectiles, so we're going to move back inside. >> look at this. you can really start to feel the wind and the rain. i'm getting blown away here, so you know what, j.c. and eric, we're going to hand it back to you. >> we'll show you what we're seeing off here just off behind me, woo, when that rain hits your face, it really hurts, guys. >> i do want to get back to matt gutman and his crew, if you can hear me, just reassure me that you are okay. we lost his audio, but producers assure me that he is okay. >> i believe i'm standing pretty much where the storm drain is. and you can see how far i've sunk down into the sand.

>> this is why they should not be out on the roads. should not be taking any unnecessary risks because there is literally a hurricane right outside. >> really strong out here right now. actually difficult to even keep our balance, and so, yeah. ah! >> it's also kind of hard to tell in which direction the wind is blowing. there is a sort of circular swirl happening. the eye wall is clearly, i don't know, within a few miles of where we are standing. >> quite a scene there. the last 24, 48 hours for many of these reporters who are vets at covering hurricanes. but even so, hurricane irma was a powerful one that caught a lot of them offguard. >> we saw a lot of them having trouble just standing in the storm. they eventually had to go inside and seek shelter because they couldn't make it out there anymore. >> continuing coverage here as well as our facebook page at wnn fans.com.

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hurricane irma shaking an entire state. >> the powerful storm is making a slow march up florida's spine. >> we're feeling the brunt of hurricane irma right now. >> the fierce winds clobbering both coasts. >> oh, my god. >> construction cranes toppling over miami's skyline. naples underwater and a test for tampa this morning. not seeing a hurricane like this in nearly a century. >> we have for 90 years avoided this day. but i think our day has come. >> this morning millions are without power. >> whoa! >> and the dangers are far from over as millions more prepare for irma's punch. >> everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face. well, we're about to get punched in the face. >> the damage left behind. and where irma is heading right