Hurricane Irma Nearing Southwest Florida Coast; Streets Flooding In Downtown Miami
JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello. I'm Jake Tapper. This is STATE OF THE UNION. You're watching breaking news coverage now. The eye of Hurricane Irma is barrelling towards the southwest coast of Florida, after making landfall over Cudjoe Key at 9:10 this morning Eastern.</s>TAPPER: This and worse is what people can expect as Irma tracks up Florida's west coast. We have reporters in the Florida Keys and in major cities along both the east and west Florida coast. We're going to start with CNN's Kyung Lah in Miami Beach, Florida which is getting hit with hurricane strength winds right now. Kyung, what is it like there?</s>KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You can definitely feel when the bands come through because you get hit with sudden gusts, sudden very strong gusts of hurricane force winds. I am standing next to a steel rail, so, mom, holding on. But we do want to show you what it's like here. Because in part we want people in the west to understand what is coming your way and what we are experiencing here in Miami Beach it's being viewed by the city as really dodging a major bullet here. We have not seen a storm surge. There is hurricane force winds. It is very strong. You can see that signs have toppled over. And I want you to take a look down the street. A major concern here is flying debris. You can see all those branches. All of that has been flying through the streets. We've seen some of it in the form of broken street signs. So that is a major concern. But trying to stand up right is almost impossible if you're not standing next to something. So this is the reason why the Miami Beach police department and the fire department say that they are no longer able to respond to calls. You physically cannot respond to calls as emergency personnel without putting yourselves into danger. That's why there was a mandatory evacuation. We have heard from the police and fire they themselves are hunkered down because they do not -- they simply cannot respond to any sort of emergencies. As far as what they did over night, though, Jake, they did try to put out some fire, did try to make some immediate rescues. But we have not heard of any major injuries or fatalities at least here in Miami Beach.</s>TAPPER: OK. Kyung --</s>LAH: So what we are expecting for the next few hours -- yes.</s>TAPPER: Just hold on one second because I want to bring in John Berman, who is right next door in Miami. And I want to keep both of you with us right now. But Berman, tell us about where you are right now?</s>JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm in the wind, Jake. The wind is gusting pretty fiercely here. I'm in Miami close to downtown Miami right now getting some pretty fierce gusts. Two things happening in downtown Miami we need to tell you about. Kyung Lah out there in Miami Beach, not getting storm surge, we are getting it here. There were pictures we showed just moments ago on CNN from Brickell Boulevard, water waist-deep in some places there. Biscayne Bay has broken through in some areas and starting to flood the streets. The wind just pushing the water up into the streets. And behind me I don't think if you can see right now, the jet skis. The water lapping up over that dock right there. There are all these docks you can't see that have been covered by water. And the water creeping up ever so slowly here. We're watching it very, very carefully. The other story here in downtown Miami is the wind. All morning we were getting reported wind gusts of more than a hundred miles an hour in the tops of high rises. And that now has had a consequence. This crane collapsed or cracked depending on how you want to call it at 300 Biscayne Boulevard. That crane, the boom has sort of fallen off the rest of the crane, appears to be resting on top of this building under construction right now. We don't know if it's still attached in any way whether by cables or anything else. But there are dangling cables around there. City officials telling people not to go anywhere near that area. Frankly, if you were smart right now in Miami you would go inside. There's no reason to go outside not with the winds blowing the way they are and not with these reports now, Jake, of storm surge on some of the main streets here in the downtown area. The areas, by the way, where there were mandatory evacuations because they were worried about just this type of thing, Jake.</s>TAPPER: All right. John Berman, stay with us. I want to go to Chad Myers in the CNN Severe Weather Center. Chad, give us the big picture perspective on what we see going on. We saw Kyung Lah in Miami Beach taking the brunt of it when it comes to wind. We see John Berman in Miami getting wind and also storm surge. What is going on?</s>CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I will try to be brief because I have stood where those people have been standing in a hurricane and know how annoying it is for someone standing in the dry studio to keep talking when you're getting blasted. Miami going to see wind gusts probably now in excess of 15 miles per hour, greater than where you are now. Key Deer and National Wildlife that would be Big Pine Key, that is 120 miles per hour. Miami International, 94. The higher you go up in elevation across those buildings, the higher the wind goes. Here is where the wind is right now. Right through key Biscayne and into Miami Beach. Our Kyung Lah is there. Kyung, you are -- I know it looks bad right now for you, but your winds are going up 20 miles per hour from here. I need you in a safe place.</s>TAPPER: Kyung Lah, you heard that?</s>LAH: We are standing next to -- yes. We are standing next to the Betsy Hotel where we're staying. There are some safe barriers. I have a steel rail that I'm holding onto. There's no projectile that I can see that's heading our way. But what I can tell -- oh, my goodness -- OK. So this is incredibly. And I'm just going to call it. This is stupid. These two guys going out in the rain and in these storms. First of all, I don't know how they're staying up on two wheels. Do not do that. They may be joy seekers, but that is absolutely unsafe. The Miami Beach police and fire have said if those two guys get injured, they will absolutely not be able to help them out. They stopped responding to emergency calls. If you dial 911 here, they can't physically get to you. So if you are preparing on the west side for these hurricane force winds, remember you've got to make sure that you are in a safe place that you know what you're doing. Do not be riding your bicycle out here. The winds that we're experiencing here, it makes it very difficult for me to stand. If I didn't have this steel railing, I'd be flying. What you can see happening to the trees here, they're just blowing in the wind. When we were out here earlier -- yesterday some of those trees -- I don't know if it's those in particular, but there were trees up and down this particular street that had coconuts on them. Those are long gone because they've flown in the air. The debris is a major issue. The fire department told us over night they had transformers blow, they had some fires, a gas leak. People who had to be rescued out of an elevator. They tried to respond to as much as they could, try to help as many people as they could, but then all of this started. So -- yes, you know, you just want to stay inside if possible. And then for the west side you see what we're going through. Part of the reason why we do this is to show you and to put it into perspective of what's coming your way.</s>TAPPER: And Kyung Lah has been reporting all morning. It has been more than three or four hours that the city of Miami Beach announced that first responders will not leave. So if people like those cyclists or anyone else does get injured, sadly they will be on their own. Chad Myers, back to you in the CNN Severe Weather Center. Where is this storm headed exactly at this point?</s>MYERS: It is headed to Naples. It is headed to Everglades City. It is heading into the Everglades National Park. When it parallels Miami, that will be its closest approach, and what Kyung Lah is experiencing now is about 80. When the storm gets closer to her it will be a hundred. Berman, you've seen about 75 to 80 right now. You are going to a hundred as well. The problem I have with your live shot is that water will still come up two to three feet, John. Where are you going to go?</s>BERMAN: Yes, Chad, we're watching that very, very carefully. If the water does increase any much more we will move inland to higher ground. We have a route planned out here, Chad. We do appreciate that. And again, you know, the winds here already strong enough to topple that crane, Jake.</s>TAPPER: All right. Kyung Lah is standing more safely off to the side there. And we thank her for that. Kyung, I don't think if you can hear us still, but feel free to stay out of the shot.</s>LAH: I can hear --</s>TAPPER: Yes.</s>LAH: I can hear you, Jake.</s>TAPPER: No, stay out of the shot. Kyung, stay out of the shot. Just tell us what you see, but there's no need for you to subject yourself to 80 miles per hour winds. John Berman, let me ask you the storm surge which is anticipated more where you are and you say you're saying witnessing it than in other parts of Florida, when that comes -- and, Chad, feel free to weigh in after John -- when that comes -- does it come gradually or does it come like a giant wave?</s>BERMAN: It comes gradually, Jake. But in some places like we saw in Brickell Boulevard downtown, it moves up gradually. But when it gets over a barrier, it will flow in fairly rapid fashion. But people have been warned about this for days and days, Jake. I mean, that area, Brickell Boulevard is in a mandatory evacuation zone. Hopefully people got out. That is why authorities wanted these areas clear. You know, they don't want you living in an island in a high rise building right now where you can't get down past the first floor. So hopefully people did heed those warnings and moved out. And as far as where we are and Chad was talking about the fact it may be go up another two feet or so, again, we've been watching it. This, you know, three feet higher than it was when we started. There's some</s>TAPPER: All right. Good. And, Chad Myers, I know from covering previous storms I know what a 110-mile per hour wind feels like. It feels like your face is being ripped off your skull. I experienced that in a wind tunnel, not in an actual hurricane but in a wind tunnel to try to explain it to the public what it feels like. Randi Kaye did that a few days ago. That is what the winds are going to be like where John can Kyung are soon enough.</s>MYERS: Absolute. We're already at -- we're already at 90. Now every gust is 90 miles per hour. Every time a cell comes onshore, a line of the outer band comes onshore, that wind goes to 90 to 95. And that we even get to 100 to 105. Here is the bay that we've been worried about. This is Biscayne Bay. Kendall you're already seeing winds over 90. Easy because you're closer to the eye. Before (ph) you go Coral Gables, again easy 90, 95. Then you farther your go west the higher the winds are. But it's this open area here, here's Government Cut where the cruise ships park, this is all open through the Key Biscayne National Park. All of this water is pouring into Key Biscayne and into Biscayne Bay. Across the bay and across and into Miami. And that's what's flooding now. This wind direction will not change for two to three more hours. And the water is going to continue to come up. We're at 3.5 feet right now surge -- and I think we're easily two more --</s>TAPPER: Let me interrupt you for one second. You're talking -- you're talking about that surge, and we're looking at images --</s>MYERS: Yes.</s>TAPPER: -- right now from a CNN affiliate in downtown Miami. And the streets look like a river. That surge has arrived.</s>MYERS: It absolutely has. Here's the map that I made three days ago. What we expect with a six foot surge. All of downtown Miami will be covered in this blue color that you see there. That's the water depth if the water goes to six feet. Right now it's five and a half. That's where the water is at this exact point and still going up.</s>TAPPER: Berman, the water where you are obviously the water is the deadliest force in all of this. As horrific as the winds are, it is the storm surge that ends up taking the most lives in hurricanes such as these. And where you are, you're seeing the water surge.</s>BERMAN: Yes, you're seeing the water rise slowly, Jake. And it has been rising slowly over the last several hours. What Chad was talking about right there is just where it over flowed some areas as it came up and rushed down into Brickell Boulevard. That's five and a half feet. As Chad was saying, you know, they've been predicting as much as six feet of storm surge. But there were mandatory evacuations for some 600,000 people in Miami- Dade County, Jake. And those 600,000 people were told to evacuate because of fears of storm surge. It's not the wind. You hide from the wind. You run from the water because there's nothing you can do. Once the water starts coming, you know, if you live in one of the bottom floors, the water is going to come in to your apartment. If you live in the higher floors, you won't be able to get out and the first responders won't be able to get to you. Hopefully, again, most people did listen to those warnings and did evacuate. Some of the biggest evacuations this county has ever seen people now sheltering now inland, hopefully not heading to Tampa to shelter because that's a whole other world of problems that you're going to get in the next few hours right now. But it is remarkable that all this has happened, Jake, even though the eye of this storm did hit Miami, there's been concern about that this storm moved west, heading for Fort Myers and Tampa, not the worst of the storm. But we still damage that this huge wide storm has caused and is still causing, Jake.</s>TAPPER: All right. Let me go back to Kyung Lah who's in Miami. And, Kyung, we see different parts of the City of Miami where you are right now. Streets have turned to rivers, that the water -- the surge is coming. And it's flooding parts of downtown Miami.</s>LAH: And I can't see that from where we are. What I can tell you is the last time I checked in with the Miami Beach fire department, they said that as far as massive flooding, that is not something they have experienced as of yet. But as Chad pointed out, the stronger winds still have yet to come. When my producer</s>TAPPER: All right. Kyung Lah in Miami Beach where the winds are horrific right now and projectiles are a real risk. John Berman in Miami, the city proper where it's both the wind and the water. John, the water behind you that you say has been rising over the last several hours, how close is it to ground level?</s>BERMAN: Well, look, so what this is a marina right now. So the marina it goes down to really the water's edge right now. And I'll walk over. You see this cement where -- we're not going to get too close right now. After the cement, there is, you know, two feet to the water right now. At low tide there's probably five feet. So it's up three feet. And right there where you see, you know, that rope -- you see that rope? That's actually tied to a dock that normally is above the water right now. It's not above the water now it's a foot under water. So you can see where the water has crept up. Those jet skis, they're attached also to a dock where the water is lapping over right now. We actually have seen a dock detach</s>TAPPER: And, John, we know Kyung Lah is covering the storm from the hotel. I mean, she's right outside the hotel. But she's staying in that hotel, and that is where she can get to safety in a moment's notice if need be. What about you? People at home are watching and they're wondering about you. How quickly can you get out of there and how quickly can you get to a safe place?</s>BERMAN: Talking about my mom and dad who are both watching right now, we have cars parked</s>TAPPER: And, John, just to explain to the people at home if the winds you are experiencing right now are somewhere in the 80 to 90 mile per hour territory, tell us what that feels like. Tell us what the experience is like, and why it's dangerous even beyond the storm surge, which is the most dangerous.</s>BERMAN: Well, you have to do this ridiculous dance, Jake, where you're leaning into the wind the whole time. And that if</s>TAPPER: No, it feels like little needles going into your face. Let's go back to Chad for one second. Chad, the people in Miami, not just, John, the people in Miami Beach, not just Kyung, how much longer are they going to be going through this? And we know this isn't even the eye of the storm, this isn't even the worst of it.</s>MYERS: This is not the closest approach to the eye of the storm yet. So it still goes worse from here. Exactly I would say we get this for another six hours before it even starts to go down. And that's the real reason we don't want you in your home if it's not a strong house. This is a long duration. This is not a tornado that goes through in 17 seconds and it's over. This goes on and on and on. Now, I want you to just think about this for a second. Grab a cup of coffee and blow on the top of a cup of coffee and try to cool it off. The waves your breath makes will blow the coffee to the other side of the coffee cup. That's what's happening here. The waves, because of the wind, are blowing the ocean on the other side of the coffee cup. And there's our Kyung Lah right there. What's happening here the water is piling up, but it's going around here through Government Cut and it's piling here. So if we keep pushing the air from our coffee cup or the wind, it's going to pileup here. Not so much in Miami Beach because it's going to go around. Not so much on Fisher Island because it's going to go around. This is the area -- right, there is our John Berman, this is the area that's flooding right now. It's the Brickell area of Miami. And also even farther to the north we're seeing those now (ph) waves and storm surge numbers at about 5.5 feet. That's enough to get over some sea walls there in downtown Miami.</s>TAPPER: All right. Chad, thank you so much. We're going to take a very quick break. When we come back, we're going to check in with some people on the west coast of Florida, where the eye of the hurricane is headed. Keep in mind all of this horror that we're seeing in Miami and Miami Beach, this isn't even the eye of the storm. The eye of the storm has gone through the Keys. We don't know exactly what the situation is like there, but we're going to now experience -- the country is going to experience the eye of the storm hitting the west coast of Florida. Stay with us.