As Hurricane Irma bears down on the British territory of Turks and Caicos, mainland Florida too is preparing for the worst. Irma remains a category 5 hurricane with wind gusts up to 295km/h.
It's already wreaked havoc and devastated the twin island nation of Antigua and Barbuda; it's churned over the Dominican Republic and it's expected to make landfall on Turks and Caicos later today.
Barbuda has been left barely habitable. Kate Stein is the environment reporter with WLRN in Miami. She says the worst is expected, as there are two more hurricanes in the Atlantic basin following Hurricane Irma.