Hurricane Irma damage in pictures: Virgin Islands, Bahamas, Turks and Caicos DESTROYED
HURRICANE Irma has left a path of destruction through the Caribbean, with at least 14 people reported dead. Here are the most devastating pictures of the hurricane's destruction.
Virgin Islands declare state of emergency after Hurricane Irma
Hurricane Irma's passage through the West Indies and Leeward Islands has caused great destruction to the many nations in the region.
The Island of Barbuda felt the strongest power of the storm, with roughly 95 per cent of the island's structures being levelled to the ground.
The cyclone which has weakened into a category 4 hurricane, tore through the Virgin Islands, killing at least three on the US controlled portions of the archipelago.
Sir Richard Branson, who owns the island of Nekker just north of Virgin Gorda, said that Nekker was left "completely and utterly devastated" by the cyclone.
"It is a traumatic time here in the British Virgin Islands," the millionaire posted on his Virgin website blog. "I have never seen anything like this hurricane."
The hurricane passed over the islands with torrential downpours and deadly winds. Multiple bays across the islands were left flooded, and power was cut off across Virgin Gorda.
One terrifying photo, taken in the Paraquita Bay on the British Island of Tortola, shows dozens of yachts piled up on top of each other.
Elizabeth Doody, who was caught up in the hurricane, told Komo News that the experience was "terrifying".
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"There was nothing whatsoever that compared to this," she said.
"It was eerie. The winds and the rain were so high that it was a whiteout in front of your house. You could not see anything.
"And the howling ripping through the house...we prayed, we just tried to be positive and say how lucky we are that we are in a really safe home. It was just so scary."
On the French and Dutch controlled island of St Martin, trees where pulled out of the ground and homes were reduced to rubble.
French Interior Minister Gérard Collomb announced at a press conference that so far at least nine people have died, 112 have been wounded and seven are still missing.
I have never seen anything like this hurricane
Photographs reveal how the once densely populated Orient Bay has been flattened to the ground with overturned cars and shredded wooden buildings.
Even the more sturdy homes were not spared the horrors as the cataclysmic winds punched through walls and tore down brick constructions.
The Turks and Caicos Islands were struck early Friday, cutting off all communication with the islands.
British couple survive Hurricane Irma after barricading hotel room
The exact extent of the damage remains unknown, but the island was forecast to be hit with waves as high as 20 feet.
Images captured during the storm's arrival over the Turks' island of Providenciales, show a cascading wall of rain and heavy winds battering the tiny island.
The Dominican Republic was on the edge of Irma's path. Trees and electric cables were strewn across the streets as 5,000 residents were evacuated further inland.
Photos from the coast of Nagua show how the storm eroded the coastline and tore through asphalt roads.
Families seeking shelter from the battering storm in Santo Domingo were photographed strewn across make shift beds and mattresses in a community shelter.
The neighbouring Haiti also felt the destruction. One young boy in the neighbourhood of Shada was photographed seeking shelter from the rain under a sheet plastic.
Elsewhere, the coast was battered with frothing waves and strong winds.
The eye of the storm is now edging closer to the Bahamas and is forecast to approach the coast of Florida on Sunday morning.