Powerful category 5 storm. Now it has sustained winds of 168 miles an hour or 270 kilometers an hour. No recorded storm has ever maintained that intensity for such a long time. And irma is so large and powerful that even glancing a glancing blow can be de stating. Now to the southeast of florida, irma right now is hammering the turks and Caicos Islands. The governor there says escape is impossible. Take a listen. Yes, it is. Its hunker down. Stay where you are. Because you cant good out because the winds are just far, far too strong. Nobody can get to you either. So people for a little while on their own or with their families or in the shelters. Well, by sunday, irma will likely be here on miamis doorstep. Whatever happens from that point, it is certain to be bad, unfortunately. And wehile riding out the hurricane is strongly discouraged. Its already a killer. At least ten deaths have been confirmed so far from the ravaged islands of the caribbean, including four deaths in the u. S. V
at least ten deaths in the caribbean islands, in the u.s. it s prompting one of the largest mass evacuations ever. our kyung lah has the story. reporter: irma, destructive and deadly, turning right towards homestead, florida. joelle melendez, racing from window to window, house to house. if you are financially stable and you re able to get out of here, get out of here. reporter: remembering this is what hurricane andrew did to homestead 25 years ago. the cat 5 nearly wiping his hometown off the map. this is a picture of melendez s childhood home completely flattened. his family only survived by hiding in a neighbor s concrete house. he is boarding up homes for free. it s traumatizing, you know? serious. this ain t no game. i feel for a lot of people that i can t help, that i can t get to because i m only one guy, and my brother and i, you know. hopefully i made some type of change or i saved a life or two.