A Hurricane Warning is posted for Pinellas, Hillsborough, Manatee and Polk counties in the Bay News 9 viewing area.

A Storm Surge Warning is in effect for north of Venice to Anclote River and Tampa Bay, with a storm surge watch from the Anclote River north to Suwannee River.

Hurricane Irma is still projected to come up through South Florida as a major hurricane.

If you should lose power but still have wifi access or cell phone data you will be able to watch Bay News 9:

As Irma reaches Florida, more watches and warnings will be issued. 

Irma is forecast to directly impact Florida based on the latest track and forecast models with a projected landfall Sunday morning in South Florida, however bands of rain will spread north to Central Florida starting Saturday night. 

Preparations locally should be brought to completion in anticipation of hurricane force winds among other hazards. 

Pinellas County mandatory evacuations for Zone A residents started Friday at 6 a.m.

Manatee County voluntary evacuations began at 7 a.m.

Evacuations started at 8 a.m. Friday in Hillsborough County. It's for those registered with the county as special needs residents who live in Zone A. There are two shelters for those residents: USF Sundome and Strawberry Crest.

Voluntary evacuations are in place for Polk County residents who live in manufactured and mobile homes, or in areas of the county that historically are prone to flooding following heavy rains. Residents are strongly recommended to take advantage of open shelters during Hurricane Irma. 

In Pasco County, a mandatory evacuation has been ordered for residents living west of US 19.

This evacuation also is for Pasco residents living north of Fox Hollow Drive, west of Little Road. Order also includes residents south of Fox Hollow Drive to the south county line between Regency Park Blvd./Rowan Rd./Seven Springs Blvd. and Little Rd., effective 6 p.m. 

The order also is for special needs residents and people living in manufactured homes, mobile homes, RVs and anyone living in low-lying areas or areas prone to flooding.

Irma should continue to move away from the Turks and Caicos Islands and toward the southeastern Bahamas Friday morning.  The core of the hurricane will then move between the north coast of Cuba and the Bahamas during the next day or two and then head toward Florida Sunday morning.

Hurricane hunters have found that Irma is going through an eyewall replacement cycle and is a powerful category 4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. 

While there will be some fluctuations during the next few days, Irma is expected to remain a major hurricane until landfall.

In preparation of Hurricane Irma, seven Greater Tampa Bay nonprofits, led by the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay, has set up the Tampa Bay Disaster Relief and Recovery Fund so local residents and beyond can aid in the regional recovery effort. Donors can go here to donate. 

Walmart has also pledged $1 million towards relief and recovery efforts. 

“We are deeply concerned about the devastating impact Irma is expected to have on the families and communities we serve,” said Kathleen McLaughlin, president of the Walmart Foundation and chief sustainability officer for Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. “We are committed to recovery efforts for our customers, associates and neighbors and will be there to help them through this difficult time.”

Latest Updates:  

11:50 p.m. - In Hernando County evacuations have been expanded to all areas west of U.S. 19.

11:45 p.m. - The U.S. Postal Service has suspended all operations in the Suncoast district of Florida until further notice in an abundance of caution regarding Hurricane Irma. This means all retail and delivery operations are suspended as of Friday, Sept. 8 at 7:30 p.m. for all post offices, stations, branches, and finance units within the 3-digit ZIP code ranges of 321, 327, 328, 329, 335, 336, 337, 338, 339, 341, 342, 346 and 347.

8 p.m. - The United States Coast Guard ordered condition "YANKEE" for Port Tampa, Port Manatee, and Port St. Pete as of 8 p.m., closing the port to inbound vessel traffic. Before the port closed, ships with gas were unloaded to tankers that then delivered gas to the Tampa Bay area.

Condition "YANKEE" is ordered when sustained gale force winds threaten the port within 24 hours. The condition also mandates that all oceangoing commercial vessels greater than 500 gross tons must leave the port.

The next and final elevated alert status is "ZULU", where all port operations are suspended.

5 p.m. - In anticipation of Hurricane Irma, Walmart has made a commitment to provide support for relief efforts through cash and product donations of at least $1 million to organizations helping in response.

4 p.m. - 7 Greater Tampa Bay nonprofits have set up the Tampa Bay Disaster Relief and Recovery Fund in preparation | Read story

3 p.m. - Bridges to Anna Maria Island will close to westbound traffic starting Saturday at 6 p.m.

2 p.m. - With Hurricane Irma approaching, all Spectrum wifi hotspots will be open across the state so that Floridians can stay connected with families, friends and important emergency services that will help them get prepared and reach emergency personnel if needed.

1:30 p.m. - Lots of new closings, including: Polk, Hillsborough, Manatee, Pinellas, Pasco and Hernando County Publix stores to close Saturday at 8 p.m. And Tampa International Airport will suspend operations at 8 p.m. Saturday. Click here for more closings.

11 a.m. - A Hurricane Watch is posted for Pinellas, Hillsborough, Polk and Manatee Counties in the Bay News 9 viewing area.

10 a.m. - Excerpts from Gov. Rick Scott Friday morning Irma news conference:

  • If you do not need to be on the roads, please don't travel. Find shelters in your area.
  • "All tolls across Florida roadways have been waived."
  • If you're concerned about evacuating, call 1-800-342-3577 for assistance.
  • "We need gas stations to stay open as longs as possible for residents to be able to travel to safety."
  • Unfortunately you are going to see (gas station) lines and unfortunately you are going to see outages.
  • "The Gas Buddy app is a great tool to find gas stations with fuel."
  • Over 17,000 people have signed up to volunteer, exceeding goal number. Volunteers are always needed. (1-800-FLHELP1)
  • "In times like this we band together. We will get through this together. FL is a wonderful melting pot of amazing people."
  • "Evacuate, keep everybody safe."

8 a.m. - PINELLAS COUNTY: Starting at 10 a.m. today and continuing through the evacuation window, access to the barrier islands will be restricted to the following:

  • Residents
  • Property owners
  • Business owners and employees
  • Individuals with legitimate business needs

6 a.m. - In preparation for Hurricane Irma, Pinellas County Human Services is coordinating with local partners to distribute evacuation transportation information for homeless residents.  Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA) will provide transportation for homeless individuals to local emergency shelters. There is no fee for this service.

Transportation services will take place on Friday, Sept. 8, from 2 to 7 p.m. and again on Saturday, Sept. 9, from noon to 5 p.m., to any of the following locations in:

Clearwater

• St. Vincent de Paul – 1345 Park St., St. Petersburg

• Salvation Army – 1400 4th St. S.

• Solid Rock Church – 4224 28th St. N.

• St. Vincent de Paul – 384 15th St. N.

Tarpon Springs

• St. Timothy Lutheran Church – 812 E. Tarpon Ave.

• The Shepherd Center – 304 S. Pinellas Ave.

 

Make sure to watch our Tropical Updates each hour at :49

What exactly are the spaghetti plots?
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Remember that the spaghetti model plot does not indicate the strength of a system or even development at all. It only predicts where this broad area of low pressure is expected to go.

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