The U.S. military is mobilizing to respond to fallout from historic Hurricane Irma, which has wreaked havoc on the Caribbean and is now bearing down on the Florida coast.
The Navy has already dispatched the USS Kearsarge and the USS Oak Hill to Puerto Rico and the Virgin islands to assist in rescue and recovery efforts. The Kearsarge and Oak Kill similarly supported search and rescue operations after historic flooding in South Texas caused by Hurricane Harvey. The Navy also has the USS Iwo Jima and USS New York available to provide additional support if necessary.
The Pentagon is preparing the U.S. Army Corps Of Engineers “to conduct port surveys and dredging missions to reopen ports after the storm passes.” The Pentagon elaborated in a statement that the engineers have already “deployed power teams and debris removal experts in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands to conduct assessments and restoration activities,” adding the engineers are also “closely monitoring the levels of Lake Okeechobee and the surrounding Herbert Hoover Dike.”
The U.S. has already evacuated nearly 5,000 personnel from Naval Air Station Key West and may issue more evacuation orders “as far up the coast as Atlanta, Georgia,” Navy spokesperson Trice Denny told Military Times. The U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, has been ordered to shelter in place throughout the hurricane.
FEMA Director William Brock loNG warned that Irma “a threat that is going to devastate the United States, either Florida or some of the southeastern states,” adding, “I can guarantee you that I don’t know anybody in Florida that’s ever experienced what’s about to hit South Florida.”
“They need to get out and listen and heed the warnings.”
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