Hurricane on path to hit Florida

Storm expected to pass through Cuba, gather strength over Gulf of Mexico

Hurricane Ian was growing stronger as it approached the western tip of Cuba on a track to hit the west coast of Florida as a major hurricane as early as Wednesday.

Ian was forecast to hit the western tip of Cuba as a major hurricane and then become an even stronger Category 4 with top winds of 225 km/h over warm Gulf of Mexico waters before striking Florida.

As of Monday, Tampa and St. Petersburg appeared to be the among the most likely targets for their first direct hit by a major hurricane since 1921.

“Please treat this storm seriously. It’s the real deal. This is not a drill,” Hillsborough County Emergency Management Director Timothy Dudley said at a news conference on storm preparations in Tampa.

Authorities in Cuba evacuated 50,000 people in Pinar del Rio province, sent in medical and emergency personnel, and took steps to protect food and other crops in warehouses, according to state media.

“Cuba is expecting extreme hurricane-force winds, also life-threatening storm surge and heavy rainfall,” U.S. National Hurricane Center senior specialist Daniel Brown told The Associated Press early Monday.

The hurricane centre predicted areas of Cuba’s western coast could see as much as 4.3 metres of storm surge Monday night or early Tuesday. In Havana, fishermen were taking their boats out of the water along the famous Malecon, the seaside boardwalk, and city workers were busy unclogging storm drains ahead of the expected rain.

Havana resident Adyz Ladron, 35, said the potential for rising water from the storm worries him.

“I am very scared because my house gets completely flooded, with water up to here,” he said, pointing to his chest.

On Monday afternoon, Ian was moving northwest at 20 km/h, about 310 kilometres southeast of the western tip of Cuba, with top sustained winds increasing to 135 km/h.

Ian won’t linger over Cuba, but will slow down over the Gulf of Mexico, growing wider and stronger, “which will have the potential to produce significant wind and storm surge impacts along the west coast of Florida,” the hurricane centre said.

A surge of up to three metres of ocean water and 25 centimetres of rain was predicted across the Tampa Bay area, with as much as 38 centimetres in isolated areas. That’s enough water to inundate coastal communities.

As many as 300,000 people may be evacuated from low-lying areas in Hillsborough County, county administrator Bonnie Wise said.

Some of those evacuations began Monday in the most vulnerable areas, with schools and other locations opening as shelters.

“We must do everything we can to protect our residents. Time is of the essence,” Wise said.