(Sept 11): Hurricane Irma smashed into Florida as a powerful Category 4 storm, driving a wall of water and violent winds ashore and marking the first time since 1964 the US was hit by back-to-back major hurricanes.

The eye of the storm moved over the lower Florida Keys at about 9 am on Sunday with top winds of 130 miles (209 kilometres) an hour, the US National Hurricane Center said. After Irma rakes Florida’s west coast, it may keep moving north across Georgia and Alabama.

Just over two weeks after Hurricane Harvey struck the heart of US energy production in Texas, Irma is threatening another region with almost US$200 billion ($268 billion) worth of damages. Irma’s wrath has already roiled markets, sending insurance stocks plunging and orange juice futures surging. At least 1.3 million homes and businesses in Florida had lost power by 9.30 am Sunday, a Bloomberg tally of utility reports shows.

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