By ANDREW TAYLOR, Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration is finalizing a $29 billion disaster aid package that combines $16 billion to shore up the government-backed flood insurance program with almost $13 billion for hurricane victims, according to a senior administration official and congressional aides. Outlines of the request, expected to be sent to … Continue reading
Rising sea levels and fierce storms have failed to stop relentless population growth along U.S. coasts in recent years, a new Associated Press analysis shows. The latest punishing hurricanes scored bull’s-eyes on two of the country’s fastest growing regions: coastal Texas around Houston and resort areas of southwest Florida. Nothing seems to curb America’s appetite … Continue reading
MIAMI (AP) — The Latest on Hurricane Irma (all times local): 8:05 a.m. More than 80 percent of Floridians have gotten their power restored after Hurricane Irma roared through the state. State emergency managers reported Friday that 1.92 million homes and businesses still don’t have electricity. Tens of thousands of customers in southwest Florida and … Continue reading
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — The Latest on Hurricane Irma (all times local): 9:05 a.m. An Atlanta airport official says there’ve been around 800 cancellations due to the threat of Irma, which weakened to a tropical storm Monday morning. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport spokesman Andrew Gobeil says the airport will still be operational Monday and will … Continue reading
MIAMI (AP) — A monster Hurricane Irma roared into Florida with 130 mph winds Sunday for what could be a sustained assault on nearly the entire Sunshine State, flooding streets, knocking out power to more than 1.8 million homes and businesses and snapping massive construction cranes over the Miami skyline. The nearly 400-mile-wide storm blew … Continue reading
CAIBARIEN, Cuba (AP) — Hurricane Irma battered the Turks and Caicos Islands early Friday and Cuba evacuated tourists from beachside resorts as the fearsome storm continued a rampage through the Caribbean that has killed at least 11 people, with Florida in its sights. Waves as high as 20 feet (6 meters) were expected in the … Continue reading
Police shot a man who wielded a knife and tried to get into a Miami airport terminal from a runway, prompting the closure of a busy concourse as travelers tried to leave Florida ahead of Hurricane Irma, authorities said. Miami-Dade Police Director Juan Perez said late Thursday that the unidentified suspect entered a restricted area … Continue reading
ST. JOHN’S, Antigua (AP) — Hurricane Irma roared into the Caribbean with record force early Wednesday, its 185-mph winds shaking homes and flooding buildings on a chain of small islands along a path toward Puerto Rico, Cuba and Hispaniola and a possible direct hit on densely populated South Florida. The strongest Atlantic Ocean hurricane ever … Continue reading
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The latest on Hurricane Irma (all times local): 10:15 p.m. Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Minnis says his government has ordered a mandatory evacuation of islands in the southern part of the island chain because of Hurricane Irma. Minnis says the Category 5 storm poses a dire threat to the … Continue reading
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Hurricane Irma grew into a dangerous Category 5 storm, the most powerful seen in the Atlantic in over a decade, and roared toward islands in the northeast Caribbean Tuesday on a path that could eventually take it to the United States. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Irma was … Continue reading
Spartan Echo 