The path of Hurricane Irma.

By Equestrian Life

Hurricane Irma battered the coast of South Florida on Sunday, bringing destructive winds and rain to the region. Fortunately, the state’s equestrian communities, at this stage, appear to have fared well considering the size and strength of the storm.

While there are waterlogged paddocks, plenty of trees down and power outages, animals and infrastructure in the Wellington region appear to have escaped relatively unscathed. Hurricane Irma was initially projected to be a category five storm with winds of up to 265km per hour, and subsequent preparations appear to have paid off for those in the state’s horse capital — which is just 26km inland from the coast. Wellington is home to the well-known venue of Palm Beach International Equestrian Centre.

Horses in the Wellington region have reportedly fared well.

The storm, which caused the majority of its damage to Caribbean nations and also the Florida Keys archipelago, has now move inland and been downgraded to a tropical storm. The hurricane hit the mainland via Florida Keys and then tracked northward along the Gulf Coast. More than half the state of Florida experienced power outages, and streets are underwater from Orlando and Jacksonville to coastal Georgia and South Carolina.

Weather reports are predicting rain accumulations through Wednesday of 10 to 15 inches (25 to 38 cm) for the western Florida peninsulam, and 8 to 12 inches (20 to 30 cm) on the eastern Florida peninsula and southeast Georgia.

Hurricane Irma closely follows the destructive Hurricane Harvey that affected the Gulf States (in particular Texas) with severe flooding a couple of weeks ago. Estimates suggested the two recent hurricanes could together cost the US economy $290 billion.

USEF Disaster Relief Fund Continues to Support Equestrian Communities in Need Through Generous Donations and Pledges

 

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