Some 6.3 million people in Florida had been told to evacuate.
Irma hit Marco Island at 15:35 local time. It had earlier barreled through the Florida Keys, a chain of low-lying islands to the south.
The whole of the southern tip of Florida has seen high winds, driving rain and storm surges,
About 2ft of water has been seen in Miami’s financial district, where one major street resembled a river, but the worst damage is expected on the west coast.
President Donald Trump described hurricane Irma as a “big monster”. He praised the federal agencies involved with the storm and said he would go to Florida “very soon”.
Irma has strengthened to a category 4 hurricane as it approaches Florida, with maximum sustained winds of 130mph.
Wind gusts close to hurricane force are already battering islands in south Florida, with the mainland due to be hit in the coming hours.
Water levels are already rising on Florida coast, where a huge storm surge is expected.
At least 25 people died when hurricane Irma earlier hit several Caribbean islands.
In Florida, 6.3 million people – about 30% of the state’s population – had been told to evacuate. However, on September 9, Florida Governor Rick Scott said it was now too late to leave for anyone remaining.
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) warns that a “life-threatening storm surge” is expected in the Florida Keys – a chain of small islands in Florida’s south – and also the west coast of Florida.
Hurricane Irma is predicted to hit the coast on Sunday morning, but the outer bands are already affecting the south of the state and central Miami is being lashed by heavy rain.
The Florida Keys have suffered some minor damage and are expected to bear the brunt of the storm in the coming hours.
FEMA Administrator Brock Long told CNN there were “no safe areas within the Keys”.
“You put your life in your own hands by not evacuating,” he added.
Governor Rick Scott warned residents: “If you’re in an evacuation zone, you’ve got to get to a shelter need to get to a shelter… there’s not many hours left.
“The winds are coming, there is not gonna be a lot of time now to be able to drive very far.”
Thousands of people on the mainland are currently without electricity.
The western Gulf coast is expected to be worst affected, with cities such as Tampa and St Petersburg in the path of the storm.
The Tampa Bay area, with a population of about three million, has not been hit by a major hurricane since 1921.
Some 50,000 people have gone to shelters throughout the state, Governor Scott said.
Media reports say shelters in some areas have been filling up quickly and some people have been turned away.
Miami and Broward county have imposed curfews to help clear the roads of traffic.
Hurricane Irma has hit Cuba with strong winds and heavy rain after devastating several Caribbean islands.
The monster storm made landfall on the Camaguey Archipelago, in Cuba’s north-east, as a category 5 storm but has now weakened to a category 3.
The Bahamas have largely been spared.
In Florida, 5.6 million people, or 25% of the state’s population, have been told to leave as the storm approaches. At least 20 people are known to have died so far across the Caribbean.
Hurricane Irma hit the Sabana-Camaguey Archipelago on September 8, threatening nearby coastal towns and villages.
It was the first category 5 hurricane to hit Cuba in decades. It weakened to category 3 by September 9 lunchtime but is expected to strengthen again as it approaches Florida.
According to the National Hurricane Center (NHC), at 12:00 GMT, Irma had maximum sustained winds of 130mph.
Irma has brought vast amounts of rainfall to parts of Cuba, with extensive flooding reported in the fishing village of Caibarien.
Power lines have been brought down in several parts of the central province of Camaguey, and communication is becoming increasingly difficult with towns in more remote areas.
Thousands of people have been evacuated but many others stayed to ride out the storm.
Cuban officials reported “significant damage”, without giving further details, but said there were no confirmed casualties yet, AFP news agency reported.
About 50,000 tourists are fleeing or have fled Cuba, with resorts on the north coast now empty, Reuters reports.
Hurricane Irma is expected to hit Florida on September 10, but the outer bands are already affecting the south of the state and downtown Miami is being lashed by heavy rain.
About 25,000 people are currently without electricity, energy provider Florida Power and Light reported.
Florida Governor Rick Scott issued a stark warning to those in threatened areas on the west coast.
“Look, it’s getting late,” he told NBC.
“If you’re not on the road on the west coast by noon, you need to get to a shelter, get to a friend’s house if you’re in an evacuation zone. Get off the road.”
Governor Scott said that storm surges in coastal areas could be as high as 12ft, adding that people “cannot survive this”.
Some 50,000 people have gone to shelters throughout the state, he said.
Media reports say shelters in some areas have been filling up quickly and some people have been turned away.
Residents in the Caribbean islands have made last-minute preparations for Hurricane Irma, the most powerful Atlantic storm in a decade, with officials warning of its “potentially catastrophic” effects.
Irma, a category 5 hurricane, the highest possible level, has sustained wind speeds reaching 185mph.
The hurricane is starting to hit the Leeward Islands and will move on towards Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic.
In the US, Florida’s Key West area has ordered a mandatory evacuation.
Visitors will be required to leave on September 6, with residents due to follow in the evening, and the international airport will halt all flights.
Martin Senterfitt, the emergency operations centre director in Monroe County in Florida, said: “We’re emphatically telling people you must evacuate. You cannot afford to stay on an island with a category five hurricane coming at you.”
Closer to the storm, thousands of people have been evacuated from at-risk areas. Residents have flocked to shops for food, water, and emergency supplies, and in several locations goods were already in short supply.
Airports have closed on several islands, popular holiday destinations, and authorities have urged people to go to public shelters.
President Donald Trump has declared a state of emergency for Florida, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands, mobilizing federal disaster relief efforts for those areas.
In Puerto Rico, a 75-year-old man died during preparations for the storm, which has been described by Governor Ricardo Rossello as “something without precedent”.
Storm surges, life-threatening winds and torrential rainfall are expected along the Leeward Islands, which include Antigua, Barbuda and Anguilla.
Parts of Texas and Louisiana are dealing with the damage done by Hurricane Harvey last month. But it is not yet clear what impact Hurricane Irma might have on the US mainland.
The mainland has not been hit by two category 4 hurricanes in one season since the storms were first recorded in 1851.
A third tropical storm, Jose, has formed further out in the Atlantic behind Irma, and is expected to become a hurricane later on in the week.
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