Hurricane Irma is already the most powerful hurricane ever formed in the Atlantic, but its devastating strength is matched by its massive size.
The storm crippled Caribbean islands as a Category 5 hurricane with 185 mph winds on Wednesday, and the now Category 4 storm is forecast to reach the Florida Keys by Saturday and Miami by Sunday morning.
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To show the staggering size of the hurricane, USA Today released an illustration which places a satellite image of Irma over an illustration of the state of Florida.
As of 4 p.m. EST Thursday, the hurricane was twice as wide as the Florida peninsula, USA Today reports.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott echoed this chilling statistic in a press interview Friday: “This storm is wider than our entire state. It is expected to cause major and life-threatening impacts from coast to coast.”
Current projections had Irma sitting at around 450 miles southeast of Miami as of 8 a.m. EST on Friday, and mandatory evacuation orders have been issued for barrier islands, coastal communities, low-lying areas and mobile homes across Florida.
Rainfall is forecast to reach 8-12 inches, with some isolated areas receiving up to 20 inches of rain, Scott warned. “Today is the day to do the right thing for your family and get inland for safety,” he encouraged residents of coastal Florida.
In the most current track forecast of the hurricane, Irma is poised to charge up the middle of Florida and turn inland over the weekend. This shift lessens the previous threat to the Carolinas, but increases the risk of severe storms in Georgia and Alabama.
As Irma rolls toward the southeastern United States, the hurricane has already claimed the lives of at least 13 people.
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NEW YORK CITY – DECEMBER 19: "Toil and Trouble" – Elsbeth is thrown into the world of television after the showrunner of a long-running police procedural is brutally murdered in his office, and although it appears to be the act of a disgruntled fan, she begins to suspect the show's longtime star Regina Coburn (Laurie Metcalf) who yearns for artistic fulfillment. Meanwhile, Judge Crawford (Michael Emerson) continues to be a thorn in Elsbeth's side, on the CBS original series ELSBETH, Thursday, Dec. 19 (10:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network, and streaming on Paramount+ (live and on demand for Paramount+ with SHOWTIME subscribers, or on demand for Paramount+ Essential subscribers the day after the episode airs). Pictured (L-R): Carrie Preston as Elsbeth Tascioni and Carra Patterson as Kaya Blanke. (Photo by Michael Parmelee/CBS via Getty Images)
