Hurricane Irma is still barrelling through the Caribbean, heading for Florida, but the most powerful storm recorded in the Atlantic Basin has already left a path of destruction and sorrow in its tracks. 

The category five storm smashed into islands this Wednesday, bringing with it winds up to 185 miles per hour, and tidal waves up to 20 feet. It struck the islands of Puerto Rico, Haiti, Turks and Caicos, Bermuda, Antigua and Barbuda, St. Barts, St. Martin, and other US and Bitish Virgin Isles.

So far, 20 are reported dead, and thousands are displaced. Many have been left homeless by a storm so strong, that 95% of structures were leveled on some islands.

The storm is expected to make landfall in Southern Florida on Saturday. Residents in many counties have been urged to evacuate

Here are some scenes from Irma's path from when it first made landfall on Wednesday. We'll continue updating this until Irma has vanished out to sea. 


September 11

United States: Florida

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A teen walks through flooded streets the morning after Hurricane Irma swept through the area on September 11, 2017 in Naples, Florida. Hurricane Irma made another landfall near Naples yesterday after inundating the Florida Keys. Electricity was out in much of the region with localized flooding.

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A man walks through flooded streets the morning after Hurricane Irma swept through the area on September 11, 2017 in Naples, Florida.

September 10

United States: Florida

An American flag is torn as Hurricane Irma passes through Naples, Fla., Sunday, Sept. 10, 2017.
Image: David Goldman/AP

An American flag is torn as Hurricane Irma passes through Naples, Fla., Sunday, Sept. 10, 2017.

Boats are seen at a marina in South Beach as Hurricane Irma arrives at south Florida, in Miami Beach, Florida, U.S. September 10, 2017.

Cuba

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People look the large waves crash into the Malecon after Hurricane Irma barreled into Cuba on September 10, 2017 in Havana, Cuba.

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Cubans wade through a flooded street in Havana, on September 10, 2017

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View of damages after the passage of Hurricane Irma, in Cojimar neighborhood in Havana, on September 10, 2017. Residents of Cuba's historic capital Havana were waist-deep in floodwaters after Hurricane Irma, on its way to Florida, swept by, cutting off power and forcing the evacuation of more than a million people.

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Cubans wade through a flooded street in Havana, on September 10, 2017.

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A Cuban wades through a flooded street in Havana, on September 10, 2017. Deadly Hurricane Irma battered central Cuba on Saturday, knocking down power lines, uprooting trees and ripping the roofs off homes as it headed towards Florida.

Saint-Martin

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Bowed palm trees lean before a sand-filled swimming pool in the Baie Nettle area of Marigot, on September 10, 2017 on Saint-Martin island, devastated by Hurricane Irma. People on the islands of Saint Martin and Saint Barts turn to the colossal task of rebuilding after Hurricane Irma laid waste to their infrastructure and shattered their lives.

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French firemen provide bottles of water to inhabitants of the Sandy Ground area of Marigot, on September 10, 2017 on Saint-Martin island, devastated by Hurricane Irma.

September 9

Cuba

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A man walks against heavy winds after the passage of Hurricane Irma, at Caibarien, Villa Clara province, 330km east of Havana, on September 9, 2017.

September 8

Cuba

A woman and child use a blanket as protection from wind and rain as they walk in Caibarien, Cuba, Friday, Sept. 8, 2017. Hurricane Irma battered Cuba on Saturday with deafening winds and unremitting rain, pushing seawater inland and flooding homes before taking aim at Florida. Early Saturday, the hurricane center said the storm was centered about 10 miles (15 kilometers) northwest of the town of Caibarien.
Image: Desmond Boylan/AP

A woman and child use a blanket as protection from wind and rain as they walk in Caibarien, Cuba, Friday, Sept. 8, 2017. Hurricane Irma battered Cuba on Saturday with deafening winds and unremitting rain, pushing seawater inland and flooding homes before taking aim at Florida.

Haiti

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Marie Charlotte walks through water near her house that was flooded, in Malfeti, in the city of Fort Liverte, in the north east of Haiti, on September 8, 2017, during the passage of Hurricane Irma. Irma has been downgraded to a Category Four hurricane but is still extremely dangerous, the National Hurricane Center said.

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A group of children plays on a platform, just above a flooded river, in the north east of Haiti, on September 8, 2017, during the passage of Hurricane Irma.

Saint-Martin

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A man walks on a street covered in debris after hurricane Irma hurricane passed on the French island of Saint-Martin, near Marigot on September 8, 2017.

September 7

Saint-Martin

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A picture taken on September 7, 2017 shows inhabitants of the Sandy town neighborhood clearing off wreckages in a street in Marigot on the French Carribean island of Saint-Martin, after the passage of Hurricane Irma.

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A photo taken on September 7, 2017 shows damage in Orient Bay on the French Carribean island of Saint-Martin, after the passage of Hurricane Irma. France, the Netherlands and Britain on September 7 rushed to provide water, emergency rations and rescue teams to territories in the Caribbean hit by Hurricane Irma, with aid efforts complicated by damage to local airports and harbours. The worst-affected island so far is Saint Martin, which is divided between the Netherlands and France, where French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe confirmed four people were killed and 50 more injured.

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A photo taken on September 7, 2017 shows damage in Orient Bay on the French Carribean island of Saint-Martin, after the passage of Hurricane Irma.

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People sit among damage on September 7, 2017 on the French Carribean island of Saint-Martin, after the passage of Hurricane Irma.

Dominican Republic

A home is surrounded by debris brought in by Hurricane Irma in Nagua, Dominican Republic, Thursday, Sept. 7, 2017. Irma cut a path of devastation across the northern Caribbean, leaving thousands homeless after destroying buildings and uprooting trees. Irma flooded parts of the Dominican Republic when it roared by Thursday, just off the northern coast of the island it shares with Haiti.
Image: Tatiana Fernandez/AP

A home is surrounded by debris brought in by Hurricane Irma in Nagua, Dominican Republic, Thursday, Sept. 7, 2017. Irma cut a path of devastation across the northern Caribbean, leaving thousands homeless after destroying buildings and uprooting trees. Irma flooded parts of the Dominican Republic when it roared by Thursday, just off the northern coast of the island it shares with Haiti.

Barbuda

In this Thursday, Sept. 7, 2017, photo, damage is left after Hurricane Irma hit Barbuda. Hurricane Irma battered the Turks and Caicos Islands early Friday as the fearsome Category 5 storm continued a rampage through the Caribbean that has killed a number of people, with Florida in its sights.
Image: Anika E. Kentish/AP

In this Thursday, Sept. 7, 2017, photo, damage is left after Hurricane Irma hit Barbuda. Hurricane Irma battered the Turks and Caicos Islands early Friday as the fearsome Category 5 storm continued a rampage through the Caribbean that has killed a number of people, with Florida in its sights.

Haiti

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A boy takes cover from the rain in the Shada neighborhood, in Cap-Haitien on September 7, 2017, as Hurricane Irma approaches.

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Haitian people walk through the wind and rain on a beach, in Cap-Haitien on September 7, 2017, as Hurricane Irma approaches.

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People walk in the water while fishermen take their nets on Mapou River, in the Shada neighborhood, in Cap-Haitien on September 7, 2017, as Hurricane Irma approaches.

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The sunrise is seen through the rain in Cap-Haitien on September 7, 2017, 240 km from Port-au-Prince, as Hurricane Irma approaches.

Puerto Rico

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A boy looks on in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma in Fajardo, Puerto Rico, on September 7, 2017. One of the most powerful Atlantic storms on record, the rare Category 5 hurricane churned westward off the northern coast of Puerto Rico early Thursday on a potential collision course with south Florida, where at-risk areas were evacuated.

September 6

Puerto Rico

Andrea Rivera Roberto, a 69-year-old woman who suffers emphysema, sits next to a cot at a shelter set up at Berta Zalduondo elementary school during the passage of Hurricane Irma in Fajardo, northeastern Puerto Rico, Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2017. Heavy rain and high winds lashed Puerto Rico’s northeast coast Wednesday as Hurricane Irma roared through Caribbean islands.
Image: Carlos Giusti/AP

Andrea Rivera Roberto, a 69-year-old woman who suffers emphysema, sits next to a cot at a shelter set up at Berta Zalduondo elementary school during the passage of Hurricane Irma in Fajardo, northeastern Puerto Rico, Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2017. Heavy rain and high winds lashed Puerto Rico’s northeast coast Wednesday as Hurricane Irma roared through Caribbean islands.

Joshua Alicea, right, rescue staff member from the Municipal Emergency Management Agency toured the streets of the Matelnillo community searching for citizens in distress during the passage of Hurricane Irma through the northeastern part of the island in Fajardo, Puerto Rico, Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2017. The US territory was first to declare a state of emergency las Monday, as the National Hurricane Center forecast that the storm would strike the Island Wednesday.
Image: Carlos Giusti/AP

Joshua Alicea, right, rescue staff member from the Municipal Emergency Management Agency toured the streets of the Matelnillo community searching for citizens in distress during the passage of Hurricane Irma through the northeastern part of the island in Fajardo, Puerto Rico, Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2017. The US territory was first to declare a state of emergency las Monday, as the National Hurricane Center forecast that the storm would strike the Island Wednesday.

A man reacts in the winds and rain as Hurricane Irma slammed across islands in the northern Caribbean on Wednesday, in Luquillo, Puerto Rico September 6, 2017.

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A rescue team from the local emergency management agency inspects flooded areas after the passing of Hurricane Irma on September 6, 2017 in Fajardo, Puerto Rico.

Saint-Martin

View of the aftermath of Hurricane Irma on Sint Maarten Dutch part of Saint Martin island in the Caribbean September 6, 2017.

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An aerial photography taken and released by the Dutch department of Defense on September 6, 2017 shows the damage of Hurricane Irma, on the Dutch Caribbean island of Sint Maarten.

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A photo taken on September 6, 2017 shows broken palm trees on the beach of the Hotel Mercure in Marigot, near the Bay of Nettle, on the French Collectivity of Saint Martin, after the passage of Hurricane Irma. France, the Netherlands and Britain on September 7 sent water, emergency rations and rescue teams to their stricken territories in the Caribbean hit by Hurricane Irma, which has killed at least 10 people. The worst-affected island so far is Saint Martin, which is divided between the Netherlands and France, where eight of the 10 confirmed deaths took place.

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A photo taken on September 6, 2017 shows a car on the beach in Marigot, near the Bay of Nettle, on the French Collectivity of Saint Martin, after the passage of Hurricane Irma.

Editorial

Umwelt schützen

This Is Hurricane Irma: Photos of the Biggest Storm the Atlantic Has Seen

Ein Beitrag von Olivia Kestin  und  Andrew McMaster