The most powerful storm originating from the Atlantic came to its end, leaving about 100 dead and millions more evacuated.

The hurricane started its path from the Atlantic Ocean and swept through the Caribbeans as a category 5 hurricane with winds up to 185 mph and heavy rain. Irma left the string of islands destroyed. The hurricane destroyed or severely damaged over 95% of the buildings on the small island of Barbuda. Prime minister Gaston Browne of Barbuda estimates that the repairs will cost up to 100 million dollars and months of construction. The hurricane goes on to hit Anguilla, Saint Martin, Saint Bart, Puerto Rico, Cuba, and many more nations (CNN).

Hurricane Irma then proceeds to strike the Florida Keys as a category 4 hurricane. Florida was forced to declare a state of emergency prior to Irma’s arrival. More than 6 million residents were compelled to evacuate the area, making it one of the largest evacuations in United States’ History(CNN). Hurricane Irma claimed a death toll of 61 in Florida(Aljazeera). Irma then proceeds to Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Alabama, luckily having been downgraded to simply a tropical storm. Trump declares a state of emergency in Georgia as heavy rain falls on the Southeastern coast.

Although Hurricane Irma departed, for many people the crisis is far from over. The people of Florida returned to their homes simply to discover another crisis amongst the ruins. Hurricane Irma has destroyed approximately 25% of the homes in Florida, leaving many families temporarily homeless. Even the structures that sustained Irma’s visit still cannot function properly. lrma left 5.8 million homes in the Florida Keys alone without electricity, fuel, running water, and other basic necessities. Some areas are still flooded by the battering rainfall. In the Caribbean Islands Irma similarly left many homeless and others without electricity (Business Insider).

Hurricane Irma tore through the Caribbean Islands Islands and devastated the Southeastern coast of continental United States. Kenneth Darmawan (12) is glad that he “ lives in California” and wished the victims of Hurricane Irma luck “with recovery and reconstruction” and added that perhaps “these natural disasters occur on such a large scale because of global warming and environmental damages.”

After the natural disaster ripped through North America, many, affected or not, came together to assist the victims. To participate donate here.