Oil Storms

Emergency officials issued the first evacuation orders for the Florida mainland on Friday in advance of slow-moving but powerful Hurricane Wilma, and Keys residents were also asked to start leaving. The mandatory order, effective at noon, covered part of the Gulf Coast town of Naples and the snowbird enclave of Marco Island. It was not immediately clear how many residents were affected, Collier County emergency management spokeswoman Jaime Sarbaugh said, but early Friday, northbound traffic out of the Naples and Fort Myers area was backed up for at least 10 miles on Interstate 75.
"Your life is much more important than your things," Sarbaugh said.
At 11 a.m. EDT, Wilma had wind of 145 mph, and its inner eyewall had reached Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, where the storm was expected to hover longer than previously predicted. Landfall somewhere on Florida's western coast was likely to come Monday afternoon, forecasters said. Still, officials encouraged island residents "to voluntarily evacuate because of the potential of overcrowded highways." The Monroe County officials will announce a mandatory evacuation after it's clearer when Wilma's weather will reach the low-lying chain. The voluntary evacuation for residents came two days after tourists were directed to leave the Keys, leaving quiet streets and little activity. Many residents have already prepared their homes.

Wilma's slower forward pace could mean that the storm will be weaker when it reaches Florida, though the weather service was labeling it as "extremely dangerous." Authorities took advantage of the unexpected extra day to stockpile emergency supplies. Max Mayfield, director of the hurricane center, said the slowdown would likely weaken Wilma from a Category 4 storm to a Category 3 or less before making landfall in the United States."The timing is certainly working in our favor," Mayfield said. But he stressed that Wilma probably would still be a strong hurricane with a powerful storm surge when it reaches Florida.
After its strike on Yucatan _ which Mayfield said could cause catastrophic damage _ Wilma was expected to turn sharply northeast toward Florida as it is pushed by the westerlies, the strong wind current that generally blows toward the east.
Mayfield said Wilma is unusually large, with an eye 38 miles wide and tropical storm-force winds extending out some 200 miles from the center that could cause widespread damage. "Don't just focus on the eye of the hurricane," Mayfield said.
State meteorologist Ben Nelson warned that Wilma could produce a storm surge of 12 to 17 feet. Although Wilma was expected to approach Florida from the west, forecasters warned that major cities on the peninsula's Atlantic Coast, including Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach could be hit by strong wind and heavy rain.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency was positioning emergency materials in Jacksonville, Lakeland and Homestead. FEMA acting chief R. David Paulison said the agency has 150 truckloads of ice and 150 truckloads of water, and the Red Cross has 200,000 meals available. "We are ready for the storm, as much as you can be," Paulison said in Washington.

Gov. Jeb Bush declared a state of emergency Thursday. He said the state had food, water, ice and other supplies ready and disaster-response teams that included up to 7,500 National Guard members standing by.
"We are battle-tested, well-resourced, well-trained," he said.
The governor urged people not to hoard gasoline, which frequently causes long lines at gas stations and some to run out of fuel. Bush said an estimated 200 million gallons of fuel were available at Florida ports, an adequate supply.