Irma caused Manatee County man to drown during storm, report says
Hurricane Irma directly caused four deaths in Florida and one is reported to have occurred in Manatee County, according to the National Hurricane Center.
According to the center’s Tropical Cyclone Report on the hurricane, an 89-year-old man drowned when he went outside during the storm to secure his boat to the dock and fell into a canal.
The other direct deaths, the report says, took place in Duval and Broward counties.
NHC has issued its Tropical Cyclone Report for 2017's Hurricane #Irma - a long-lived Cape Verde hurricane that reached category 5 intensity. It caused widespread devastation & is one of the strongest & costliest hurricanes on record in the Atlantic basin. https://t.co/kxh8iW2at9 pic.twitter.com/Gks0zwz7FC
— Natl Hurricane Ctr (@NWSNHC) March 12, 2018
The report also says there were 80 indirect deaths in Florida caused by the storm. A combination of falls during preparations for Irma’s approach, vehicle accidents, carbon monoxide poisoning from generators, chainsaw accidents and electrocutions were mainly to blame.
Meteorolgists with the Hurricane Center also report that the massive hurricane stands as one of the strongest and cosliest hurricanes on record in the Atlantic basin.
Samantha Putterman: 941-745-7027, @samputterman
This story was originally published March 12, 2018 at 7:27 PM with the headline "Irma caused Manatee County man to drown during storm, report says."