JEWISH KING JESUS IS COMING AT THE RAPTURE FOR US IN THE CLOUDS-DON'T MISS IT FOR THE WORLD.THE BIBLE TAKEN LITERALLY- WHEN THE PLAIN SENSE MAKES GOOD SENSE-SEEK NO OTHER SENSE-LEST YOU END UP IN NONSENSE.GET SAVED NOW- CALL ON JESUS TODAY.THE ONLY SAVIOR OF THE WHOLE EARTH - NO OTHER.
1 COR 15:23-JESUS THE FIRST FRUITS-CHRISTIANS RAPTURED TO JESUS-FIRST FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT-23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.ROMANS 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.(THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE)
STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES
LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun,(HEATING UP-SOLAR ECLIPSES) and in the moon,(MAN ON MOON-LUNAR ECLIPSES) and in the stars;(ASTEROIDS ETC) and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear,(TORNADOES,HURRICANES,STORMS) and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth:(DESTRUCTION) for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.(FROM QUAKES,NUKES ETC)
THE FIRST JUDGEMENT OF THE EARTH STARTED WITH WATER-IT ONLY MAKES SENSE THE LAST GENERATION WILL BE HAVING FLOODING
GENESIS 7:6-12
6 And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth.
7 And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood.
8 Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth,
9 There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah.
10 And it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth.
11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.
12 And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights.
GOD PROMISED BY A RAINBOW-THE EARTH WOULD NEVER BE DESTROYED TOTALLY WITH A FLOOD AGAIN.BUT FLOODIING IS A SIGN OF JUDGEMENT.
AS HURRICANE IRMA COMES IN ALL OVER FLORIDA. THE WATERS WILL BE RECEEDING OR GOING OFF SHORE. BUT THEN LATER ON ALL THAT WATER THAT RECEEDED WILL BE COMING BACK AS A MINOR TSUNAMI. AND ALL OVER FLORIDA WILL BE MINOR TSUNAMIS FLLODING ALL THE AREAS WERE THE WATER LEFT THE SHORES. THIS WILL BE DANGEROUS FOR PEOPLE IF THEY WANT TO GO OUT AND WATCH THE LAND BECOME RECVEEDED. BECAUSE AS IRMA CARRIES ON ALL THAT WATER WILL TSUNAMI BACK WERE THE WATER LEFT. AND IT WILL COME BACK WITH A VENGENCE AND FLOOD BIGTIME.
I NOW BELIEVE THAT IT WAS A WATER SURGE THAT GOD DECIEVED THE PHARAOH OF EGYPT AND HIS ARMIES AT THE EXODUS OF THE ISRAELIS FROM EGYPT. GOD MADE A WIND TO MAKE THE WATERS RECEED. THEN PHARAOH AND HIS ARMIES WERE DECIEVED TO BELIEVE THAT IT WAS DRY GROUND. SO THEY WENT ON THE DRY GROUND AFTER THE FLEEING ISRAELIS. BUT THEN GOD CHANGED THE WINDS THE OPPOSE WAY. AND THE WATER SURGE THEN REVERSED. AND DROWN RAMSIS 2ND AND ALL HIS EGYPTIAN ARMIES THAT WERE AFTER THE FLEEING ISRAELIS. AND GOD SAVED ISRAEL AND KILLED OFF ISRAELS ENEMIES.
EXODUS 34:13-14,17-31
13 And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever.
14 The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.
17 And I, behold, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they shall follow them: and I will get me honour upon Pharaoh, and upon all his host, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen.
18 And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I have gotten me honour upon Pharaoh, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen.
19 And the angel of God, which went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of the cloud went from before their face, and stood behind them:
20 And it came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel; and it was a cloud and darkness to them, but it gave light by night to these: so that the one came not near the other all the night.
21 And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the LORD caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.
22 And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.
23 And the Egyptians pursued, and went in after them to the midst of the sea, even all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen.
24 And it came to pass, that in the morning watch the LORD looked unto the host of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and of the cloud, and troubled the host of the Egyptians,
25 And took off their chariot wheels, that they drave them heavily: so that the Egyptians said, Let us flee from the face of Israel; for the LORD fighteth for them against the Egyptians.
26 And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the sea, that the waters may come again upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen.
27 And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled against it; and the LORD overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea.
28 And the waters returned, and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, and all the host of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them; there remained not so much as one of them.
29 But the children of Israel walked upon dry land in the midst of the sea; and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.
30 Thus the LORD saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the sea shore.
31 And Israel saw that great work which the LORD did upon the Egyptians: and the people feared the LORD, and believed the LORD, and his servant Moses.
GOD TOLD US. HE WILL DESTROY PEOPLE WITH THE EARTH BECAUSE OF THEIR VIOLENCE. NOTICE THE EGYPTIANS WANTED TO USE VIOLENCE AGAINST THE ISRAELIS AT THE EXODUS. AND GOD DESTROYED THE EGYPTIAN ARMIES WITH THE EARTH BY FLOODING AND KILLING THEM WITH A TSUNAMI OR WATER SURGE.
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)(HAMAS IN HEBREW IS VIOLENCE)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM)(HAMAS) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
Sea surges may devastate parts of Florida: Governor Scott-[Reuters]-YAHOONEWS-September 10, 2017
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A powerful sea surge will accompany Hurricane Irma as the storm moves through Florida, and that blast of ocean water could badly damage coastal areas, Florida Governor Rick Scott said."I am very concerned about the west coast," Scott said of Florida's western shoreline that faces the Gulf of Mexico and is being hit hard by Irma.Scott was talking on Fox News Sunday.Later, on ABC News, Scott said: "This storm surge is just deadly."(Reporting by Patrick Rucker; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)
About 1.1 million lose power in Florida from Irma, utility says-[Reuters]-YAHOONEWS-September 10, 2017
(Reuters) - About 1.1 million homes and businesses have lost power in Florida as Hurricane Irma pummeled the southern part of the state, Florida Power & Light (FPL) said on Sunday.FPL, the biggest power company in Florida, said on its website that over 1,094,000 customers without power. Separately, Keys Energy Services, which serves the Florida Keys, reported 29,000 outages earlier Sunday on its website. Irma, which was passing over the Florida Keys, packed maximum sustained winds of 130 miles (215 kilometers) per hour, according to the latest update from the U.S. National Hurricane Center. FPL is a unit of Florida energy company NextEra Energy Inc.(Reporting by Scott DiSavino in New York; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)
Havana braced for floods after Hurricane Irma rakes Cuban keys-[Reuters]-By Marc Frank and Sarah Marsh-YAHOONEWS-September 10, 2017
HAVANA/CAIBARIEN (Reuters) - Hurricane Irma uprooted trees and tore off roofs in Cuba on Saturday with 125-mile-per-hour (200-km per hour) winds that damaged hotels in the island's best-known beach resorts and forced evacuations as far along the coast as low-lying areas of the capital Havana.Power was out and cellphone service was spotty in many regions as Irma neared the end of a 200-mile (320-km) trek westwards along the top of the island. It was forecast to head north toward Florida in the evening.In the fishing town of Caibarien, residents swept mud from beachside homes after storm surge drove 3 feet (1 meter) of seawater up the shore. In streets carpeted with fresh green seaweed as the water receded, people said it was the strongest cyclone ever to hit the town."Sheets of zinc that came flying into our backyard also damaged the kitchen wall and we lost many roof tiles," said Angel Coya, 52, adding he was optimistic that Cuba's Communist government would help repair the damage. "We have to keep on."Irma's turn northward was expected to occur around 150 miles (240 km) east of the capital. Nevertheless, authorities shut off power in large parts of the city and evacuated some 10,000 people from central Havana near the Malecon seawall because of fears of flooding from the storm surge.By Saturday evening, the sea had penetrated two blocks over parts of the city's historic seafront boulevard, and the waters were expected to advance farther as the surge grew. Restaurants on the seaside drive pulled down their shutters and stacked sandbags against the storm.Still, many Cubans expressed a sense of relief after the eye of the first Category 5 storm to make landfall on the island since 1932 passed over the northern keys, just grazing the mainland with its full force."Honestly, I expected worse. I thought I would come back and find the roof gone," said Yolexis Domingo, 39, using a machete to hack the branches off a tree that fell in front of his house in Caibarien. "Still, it is going to be a while before I can come back to live here. The water came up to a meter high and some of the roof flew off."-KEYS PUMMELED-Overnight, the storm pounded the chain of pristine keys and tourism resorts that stretch along the coast from central Camaguey province to Villa Clara province, and it was headed toward Varadero, Cuba's most famous beach getaway.Cayos Coco and Guillermo, the crown jewels of what is known as the King’s Gardens, with 16 hotels frequented by Canadian and European tourists, sustained serious damage, local authorities in the area said.At least one bridge on a causeway to the area collapsed, and the communications tower for the keys was no longer standing.Dozens of coastal towns were damaged, with some reports of collapsed houses, though no deaths had been reported."This is a beautiful town but now it is a disaster," said local resident Sandro Sanchez, 27, walking through the main square after the hurricane had passed Remedios, in Villa Clara.Corrugated iron from roofs were strewn in the streets alongside rubble. Lampposts were bent double, plant pots smashed and the fronds of palm trees shredded."You can’t do anything against nature," he said. "We never had a storm wreak so much damage here. This is really a mess."On Saturday, Irma covered most of the island, the Caribbean's largest. Its force sent shockwaves and flooding inward.In the city of Camaguey, Anaida Morales said she just been through a night from hell with her mom, stepson and husband."The trees in the park in front of my house are down and others strewn all over the streets. Lots of roofs are gone and some houses collapsed. The river that runs through the city is about to flood," she said."The wind roared all night and it is still strong. I couldn’t sleep. I’m scared of hurricanes and this is the worst I have been through," she said.Morales said she made a phone call to her daughter, who shares her name, in Florida, where millions of people were preparing for Irma's arrival."I just spoke to Anaida, it is hard to believe she is getting ready to go through the same thing I just did," she said.(Reporting by Marc Frank; Additional reporting by Sarah Marsh and Nelson Acosta; Editing by Frank Jack Daniel, Daniel Flynn and Jonathan Oatis)
Residents of US Virgin Islands dig out and help each other after hurricane Irma-[Christian Science Monitor]-Bailey Bischoff, Hannah Schlomann, Han Zhao-YAHOONEWS-September 8, 2017
There was only one staticky satellite line available to residents of St. John attempting to reach family and friends on the US mainland Friday morning. On Wednesday, the US Virgin islands were hit by hurricane Irma, whipping through the area as a Category 5 storm with wind speeds up to 185 miles per hour for more than 24 hours."I've had to sit through a Taliban gunfight, and this was scarier," Laura Strickling told The Associated Press. Ms. Strickling moved to St. Thomas with her husband three years ago. She used to visit him in Afghanistan when he worked there."The noise [of Irma] was just deafening. It was so loud we thought the roof was gone. The windows were boarded up, so it was hot and we had no AC, no power," Strickling said.As the storms recede, reports on the damage left behind trickled out slowly Friday as residents and visitors to the islands contacted family members. Before and after photos posted by residents on Facebook and Instagram show the island’s trees stripped of their leaves and boats tossed like discarded toys along the shore.Teri Wine, a resident of St. John and a concierge at The Westin St. John Resort Villas, was in South Carolina during the storm. She has been attempting to contact friends and neighbors since the hurricane hit. So far, she has been able to talk to a neighbor who reports that it took him two hours to walk a quarter mile down a road because of all the destruction in his path.Four people were reported killed in the US Virgin Islands, according to the Associated Press. Considerable damage has occurred to property and infrastructure.The roads across both St. Thomas and St. John are narrow and steep. On a clear day, driving the 10 miles from one end of St. John to the other could take 45 minutes.Melody Smith, a property manager for the past 12 years on St. John, watched news of hurricane Irma from her summer residence on Chebeague Island, Maine. Like many island residents, she and her husband, Tom Sheets, go off island during the months of August and September when the weather gets hot. Before leaving in August, they did all they could to prepare, but the eye of the storm passed close to her neighborhood in Coral Bay.She's assuming the worst for her one bedroom wooden house. And she doesn't have insurance."Most residents just can’t afford premiums and the insurance companies won’t insure wooden houses,” says Ms. Smith. For many, the rebuilding process will be costly.Some of St. John's 4,000 full-time residents who work in the hospitality or tourist industry live aboard sailboats. But residents have reported that many boats have been reduced to splinters.Outside support-The US Virgin islands have received some outside support, both before and after the storm. After evacuating as many people as possible from the islands, National Guard and port authorities closed airports and seaports ahead of the storm. In advance of the storm on Tuesday, the Rhode Island National Guard dropped two pallets of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs) on the islands of St. Croix and St. Thomas, according to Col. Peter Parente.The US Navy and the US Marines are currently focusing on clearing especially hard-hit areas. The USS Wasp was the first Navy vessel to arrive at St. Thomas bringing with it military personnel, emergency supplies, and helicopters to assist with the recovery. Two other ships, the USS Kearsarge and USS Oak Hill are reportedly both en route from just off the Florida coast. Both ships were originally heading to Texas to assist with flood recovery there, according to CNN.The main hospital on St. Thomas, as well as smaller emergency clinics were damaged and helicopters from the USS Wasp have been working to evacuate patients to other facilities in St. Croix and Puerto Rico. With both military and FEMA personnel are reportedly heading to the islands the priorities of emergency services are clearing roadways, evaluating infrastructure, turning power back on, clearing and repairing fields, and distributing food, water, and medical supplies.A community strengthened by love-Country singer Kenny Chesney sent a private plane this morning heading for the Virgin Island stocked with water bottles and dog food for the 30 people and 10 dogs that rode out the storm in his home in St. Thomas. Mr. Chesney commented on the strength of the community in an interview with HLN.“These people are really hard workers and they’ve got great hearts, and it’s hard to rock them even with a hurricane of this size,” Chesney said. Chesney has also started a fundraising campaign called Love for Love City that will be up on his website within the next couple of days. He is also planning a concert to raise aid money for the rebuilding process. In the HLN interview he expressed his love for the community, saying:“Yes, we will rebuild, and we will recover.”The Facebook page started by Ms. Wine to connect friends and family of islanders with their loved ones has been populated with pictures and messages of support throughout the day. Some of these pictures show scenes of communal support. One Snapchat screenshot posted on the site shows a street clear of debris with the statement, “Jacobs Ladder has been cleared. No Red Cross No National Guard The work is being done by St Johnians.” "The community especially at Coral Bay [in St. John] is absolutely incredible," says Smith in Maine, who fought back tears when she thought of the friends she was still trying to reach. "That’s the only way we are getting news. This morning there was already a volunteer meeting and they are going out to look for people. There is so much caring in that community that they are going out to look for and help others even though their house may be in ruins.”Fundraising for the islands has already begun. St. John Rescue, Inc., an all-volunteer group dedicated to “saving lives and building a better community through participation, education, and community spirit” started a Gofundme page, which has garnered more than $85,000 in donations, with the typical donation between $10 and $100.Even so, full economic recovery may be a long process. Approximately 60 percent of the islands’ GDP is from tourism. Residents could soon be facing another storm. The island is under a hurricane watch and tropical storm warning. Hurricane Jose, a Category 4 storm forming southeast of the northern Leeward islands, is currently forecast to hit the US Virgin islands on Saturday with wind speeds of 150 m.p.h.In the face of such adversity, the island residents are leaning on each other.“Our community is very tight knit and very generous especially at times like this," says Ms. Wine. "It is a very strong community. They call our island Love City.”Staff writer Kendra Nordin Beato contributed to this report. This report contains material from The Associated Press.
LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun,(HEATING UP-SOLAR ECLIPSES) and in the moon,(MAN ON MOON-LUNAR ECLIPSES) and in the stars;(ASTEROIDS ETC) and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear,(TORNADOES,HURRICANES,STORMS) and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth:(DESTRUCTION) for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.(FROM QUAKES,NUKES ETC)
THE FIRST JUDGEMENT OF THE EARTH STARTED WITH WATER-IT ONLY MAKES SENSE THE LAST GENERATION WILL BE HAVING FLOODING
GENESIS 7:6-12
6 And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth.
7 And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood.
8 Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth,
9 There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah.
10 And it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth.
11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.
12 And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights.
GOD PROMISED BY A RAINBOW-THE EARTH WOULD NEVER BE DESTROYED TOTALLY WITH A FLOOD AGAIN.BUT FLOODIING IS A SIGN OF JUDGEMENT.
AS HURRICANE IRMA COMES IN ALL OVER FLORIDA. THE WATERS WILL BE RECEEDING OR GOING OFF SHORE. BUT THEN LATER ON ALL THAT WATER THAT RECEEDED WILL BE COMING BACK AS A MINOR TSUNAMI. AND ALL OVER FLORIDA WILL BE MINOR TSUNAMIS FLLODING ALL THE AREAS WERE THE WATER LEFT THE SHORES. THIS WILL BE DANGEROUS FOR PEOPLE IF THEY WANT TO GO OUT AND WATCH THE LAND BECOME RECVEEDED. BECAUSE AS IRMA CARRIES ON ALL THAT WATER WILL TSUNAMI BACK WERE THE WATER LEFT. AND IT WILL COME BACK WITH A VENGENCE AND FLOOD BIGTIME.
I NOW BELIEVE THAT IT WAS A WATER SURGE THAT GOD DECIEVED THE PHARAOH OF EGYPT AND HIS ARMIES AT THE EXODUS OF THE ISRAELIS FROM EGYPT. GOD MADE A WIND TO MAKE THE WATERS RECEED. THEN PHARAOH AND HIS ARMIES WERE DECIEVED TO BELIEVE THAT IT WAS DRY GROUND. SO THEY WENT ON THE DRY GROUND AFTER THE FLEEING ISRAELIS. BUT THEN GOD CHANGED THE WINDS THE OPPOSE WAY. AND THE WATER SURGE THEN REVERSED. AND DROWN RAMSIS 2ND AND ALL HIS EGYPTIAN ARMIES THAT WERE AFTER THE FLEEING ISRAELIS. AND GOD SAVED ISRAEL AND KILLED OFF ISRAELS ENEMIES.
EXODUS 34:13-14,17-31
13 And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever.
14 The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.
17 And I, behold, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they shall follow them: and I will get me honour upon Pharaoh, and upon all his host, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen.
18 And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I have gotten me honour upon Pharaoh, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen.
19 And the angel of God, which went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of the cloud went from before their face, and stood behind them:
20 And it came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel; and it was a cloud and darkness to them, but it gave light by night to these: so that the one came not near the other all the night.
21 And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the LORD caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.
22 And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.
23 And the Egyptians pursued, and went in after them to the midst of the sea, even all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen.
24 And it came to pass, that in the morning watch the LORD looked unto the host of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and of the cloud, and troubled the host of the Egyptians,
25 And took off their chariot wheels, that they drave them heavily: so that the Egyptians said, Let us flee from the face of Israel; for the LORD fighteth for them against the Egyptians.
26 And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the sea, that the waters may come again upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen.
27 And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled against it; and the LORD overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea.
28 And the waters returned, and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, and all the host of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them; there remained not so much as one of them.
29 But the children of Israel walked upon dry land in the midst of the sea; and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.
30 Thus the LORD saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the sea shore.
31 And Israel saw that great work which the LORD did upon the Egyptians: and the people feared the LORD, and believed the LORD, and his servant Moses.
GOD TOLD US. HE WILL DESTROY PEOPLE WITH THE EARTH BECAUSE OF THEIR VIOLENCE. NOTICE THE EGYPTIANS WANTED TO USE VIOLENCE AGAINST THE ISRAELIS AT THE EXODUS. AND GOD DESTROYED THE EGYPTIAN ARMIES WITH THE EARTH BY FLOODING AND KILLING THEM WITH A TSUNAMI OR WATER SURGE.
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)(HAMAS IN HEBREW IS VIOLENCE)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM)(HAMAS) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
Sea surges may devastate parts of Florida: Governor Scott-[Reuters]-YAHOONEWS-September 10, 2017
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A powerful sea surge will accompany Hurricane Irma as the storm moves through Florida, and that blast of ocean water could badly damage coastal areas, Florida Governor Rick Scott said."I am very concerned about the west coast," Scott said of Florida's western shoreline that faces the Gulf of Mexico and is being hit hard by Irma.Scott was talking on Fox News Sunday.Later, on ABC News, Scott said: "This storm surge is just deadly."(Reporting by Patrick Rucker; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)
About 1.1 million lose power in Florida from Irma, utility says-[Reuters]-YAHOONEWS-September 10, 2017
(Reuters) - About 1.1 million homes and businesses have lost power in Florida as Hurricane Irma pummeled the southern part of the state, Florida Power & Light (FPL) said on Sunday.FPL, the biggest power company in Florida, said on its website that over 1,094,000 customers without power. Separately, Keys Energy Services, which serves the Florida Keys, reported 29,000 outages earlier Sunday on its website. Irma, which was passing over the Florida Keys, packed maximum sustained winds of 130 miles (215 kilometers) per hour, according to the latest update from the U.S. National Hurricane Center. FPL is a unit of Florida energy company NextEra Energy Inc.(Reporting by Scott DiSavino in New York; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)
Havana braced for floods after Hurricane Irma rakes Cuban keys-[Reuters]-By Marc Frank and Sarah Marsh-YAHOONEWS-September 10, 2017
HAVANA/CAIBARIEN (Reuters) - Hurricane Irma uprooted trees and tore off roofs in Cuba on Saturday with 125-mile-per-hour (200-km per hour) winds that damaged hotels in the island's best-known beach resorts and forced evacuations as far along the coast as low-lying areas of the capital Havana.Power was out and cellphone service was spotty in many regions as Irma neared the end of a 200-mile (320-km) trek westwards along the top of the island. It was forecast to head north toward Florida in the evening.In the fishing town of Caibarien, residents swept mud from beachside homes after storm surge drove 3 feet (1 meter) of seawater up the shore. In streets carpeted with fresh green seaweed as the water receded, people said it was the strongest cyclone ever to hit the town."Sheets of zinc that came flying into our backyard also damaged the kitchen wall and we lost many roof tiles," said Angel Coya, 52, adding he was optimistic that Cuba's Communist government would help repair the damage. "We have to keep on."Irma's turn northward was expected to occur around 150 miles (240 km) east of the capital. Nevertheless, authorities shut off power in large parts of the city and evacuated some 10,000 people from central Havana near the Malecon seawall because of fears of flooding from the storm surge.By Saturday evening, the sea had penetrated two blocks over parts of the city's historic seafront boulevard, and the waters were expected to advance farther as the surge grew. Restaurants on the seaside drive pulled down their shutters and stacked sandbags against the storm.Still, many Cubans expressed a sense of relief after the eye of the first Category 5 storm to make landfall on the island since 1932 passed over the northern keys, just grazing the mainland with its full force."Honestly, I expected worse. I thought I would come back and find the roof gone," said Yolexis Domingo, 39, using a machete to hack the branches off a tree that fell in front of his house in Caibarien. "Still, it is going to be a while before I can come back to live here. The water came up to a meter high and some of the roof flew off."-KEYS PUMMELED-Overnight, the storm pounded the chain of pristine keys and tourism resorts that stretch along the coast from central Camaguey province to Villa Clara province, and it was headed toward Varadero, Cuba's most famous beach getaway.Cayos Coco and Guillermo, the crown jewels of what is known as the King’s Gardens, with 16 hotels frequented by Canadian and European tourists, sustained serious damage, local authorities in the area said.At least one bridge on a causeway to the area collapsed, and the communications tower for the keys was no longer standing.Dozens of coastal towns were damaged, with some reports of collapsed houses, though no deaths had been reported."This is a beautiful town but now it is a disaster," said local resident Sandro Sanchez, 27, walking through the main square after the hurricane had passed Remedios, in Villa Clara.Corrugated iron from roofs were strewn in the streets alongside rubble. Lampposts were bent double, plant pots smashed and the fronds of palm trees shredded."You can’t do anything against nature," he said. "We never had a storm wreak so much damage here. This is really a mess."On Saturday, Irma covered most of the island, the Caribbean's largest. Its force sent shockwaves and flooding inward.In the city of Camaguey, Anaida Morales said she just been through a night from hell with her mom, stepson and husband."The trees in the park in front of my house are down and others strewn all over the streets. Lots of roofs are gone and some houses collapsed. The river that runs through the city is about to flood," she said."The wind roared all night and it is still strong. I couldn’t sleep. I’m scared of hurricanes and this is the worst I have been through," she said.Morales said she made a phone call to her daughter, who shares her name, in Florida, where millions of people were preparing for Irma's arrival."I just spoke to Anaida, it is hard to believe she is getting ready to go through the same thing I just did," she said.(Reporting by Marc Frank; Additional reporting by Sarah Marsh and Nelson Acosta; Editing by Frank Jack Daniel, Daniel Flynn and Jonathan Oatis)
Residents of US Virgin Islands dig out and help each other after hurricane Irma-[Christian Science Monitor]-Bailey Bischoff, Hannah Schlomann, Han Zhao-YAHOONEWS-September 8, 2017
There was only one staticky satellite line available to residents of St. John attempting to reach family and friends on the US mainland Friday morning. On Wednesday, the US Virgin islands were hit by hurricane Irma, whipping through the area as a Category 5 storm with wind speeds up to 185 miles per hour for more than 24 hours."I've had to sit through a Taliban gunfight, and this was scarier," Laura Strickling told The Associated Press. Ms. Strickling moved to St. Thomas with her husband three years ago. She used to visit him in Afghanistan when he worked there."The noise [of Irma] was just deafening. It was so loud we thought the roof was gone. The windows were boarded up, so it was hot and we had no AC, no power," Strickling said.As the storms recede, reports on the damage left behind trickled out slowly Friday as residents and visitors to the islands contacted family members. Before and after photos posted by residents on Facebook and Instagram show the island’s trees stripped of their leaves and boats tossed like discarded toys along the shore.Teri Wine, a resident of St. John and a concierge at The Westin St. John Resort Villas, was in South Carolina during the storm. She has been attempting to contact friends and neighbors since the hurricane hit. So far, she has been able to talk to a neighbor who reports that it took him two hours to walk a quarter mile down a road because of all the destruction in his path.Four people were reported killed in the US Virgin Islands, according to the Associated Press. Considerable damage has occurred to property and infrastructure.The roads across both St. Thomas and St. John are narrow and steep. On a clear day, driving the 10 miles from one end of St. John to the other could take 45 minutes.Melody Smith, a property manager for the past 12 years on St. John, watched news of hurricane Irma from her summer residence on Chebeague Island, Maine. Like many island residents, she and her husband, Tom Sheets, go off island during the months of August and September when the weather gets hot. Before leaving in August, they did all they could to prepare, but the eye of the storm passed close to her neighborhood in Coral Bay.She's assuming the worst for her one bedroom wooden house. And she doesn't have insurance."Most residents just can’t afford premiums and the insurance companies won’t insure wooden houses,” says Ms. Smith. For many, the rebuilding process will be costly.Some of St. John's 4,000 full-time residents who work in the hospitality or tourist industry live aboard sailboats. But residents have reported that many boats have been reduced to splinters.Outside support-The US Virgin islands have received some outside support, both before and after the storm. After evacuating as many people as possible from the islands, National Guard and port authorities closed airports and seaports ahead of the storm. In advance of the storm on Tuesday, the Rhode Island National Guard dropped two pallets of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs) on the islands of St. Croix and St. Thomas, according to Col. Peter Parente.The US Navy and the US Marines are currently focusing on clearing especially hard-hit areas. The USS Wasp was the first Navy vessel to arrive at St. Thomas bringing with it military personnel, emergency supplies, and helicopters to assist with the recovery. Two other ships, the USS Kearsarge and USS Oak Hill are reportedly both en route from just off the Florida coast. Both ships were originally heading to Texas to assist with flood recovery there, according to CNN.The main hospital on St. Thomas, as well as smaller emergency clinics were damaged and helicopters from the USS Wasp have been working to evacuate patients to other facilities in St. Croix and Puerto Rico. With both military and FEMA personnel are reportedly heading to the islands the priorities of emergency services are clearing roadways, evaluating infrastructure, turning power back on, clearing and repairing fields, and distributing food, water, and medical supplies.A community strengthened by love-Country singer Kenny Chesney sent a private plane this morning heading for the Virgin Island stocked with water bottles and dog food for the 30 people and 10 dogs that rode out the storm in his home in St. Thomas. Mr. Chesney commented on the strength of the community in an interview with HLN.“These people are really hard workers and they’ve got great hearts, and it’s hard to rock them even with a hurricane of this size,” Chesney said. Chesney has also started a fundraising campaign called Love for Love City that will be up on his website within the next couple of days. He is also planning a concert to raise aid money for the rebuilding process. In the HLN interview he expressed his love for the community, saying:“Yes, we will rebuild, and we will recover.”The Facebook page started by Ms. Wine to connect friends and family of islanders with their loved ones has been populated with pictures and messages of support throughout the day. Some of these pictures show scenes of communal support. One Snapchat screenshot posted on the site shows a street clear of debris with the statement, “Jacobs Ladder has been cleared. No Red Cross No National Guard The work is being done by St Johnians.” "The community especially at Coral Bay [in St. John] is absolutely incredible," says Smith in Maine, who fought back tears when she thought of the friends she was still trying to reach. "That’s the only way we are getting news. This morning there was already a volunteer meeting and they are going out to look for people. There is so much caring in that community that they are going out to look for and help others even though their house may be in ruins.”Fundraising for the islands has already begun. St. John Rescue, Inc., an all-volunteer group dedicated to “saving lives and building a better community through participation, education, and community spirit” started a Gofundme page, which has garnered more than $85,000 in donations, with the typical donation between $10 and $100.Even so, full economic recovery may be a long process. Approximately 60 percent of the islands’ GDP is from tourism. Residents could soon be facing another storm. The island is under a hurricane watch and tropical storm warning. Hurricane Jose, a Category 4 storm forming southeast of the northern Leeward islands, is currently forecast to hit the US Virgin islands on Saturday with wind speeds of 150 m.p.h.In the face of such adversity, the island residents are leaning on each other.“Our community is very tight knit and very generous especially at times like this," says Ms. Wine. "It is a very strong community. They call our island Love City.”Staff writer Kendra Nordin Beato contributed to this report. This report contains material from The Associated Press.
