Irma smashes into Florida coast bringing tornadoes, tidal surges and 130mph winds

Time is running out for anyone who is now planning to leave, with the outer bands of Irma arriving in parts of southern Florida with heavy rain and strong wind gusts which make it impossible to drive.

An overnight curfew has been imposed in Miami to stop opportunistic looters taking advantage of the countless coastal homes which now stand abandoned. The city was on course for a direct hit but it was thrown a sudden lifeline on Saturday when the storm changed course as it pounded Cuba.

On Saturday, Florida's Governor Rick Scott warned bleakly: 'You will not survive the storm. If you are in an evacuation zone, leave.' 

Brock Long, the chief of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, warned residents in the Florida Keys who have not heeded warnings: 'You're on your own until we can actually get in there, and it's safe for our teams to support local and state efforts.' 

More than 200,000 homes and businesses in Florida have lost power already. Florida Power and Light said on its website that more than half of those outages were in the Miami-Dade area, where about 600,000 people have been ordered to evacuate. 

Residents in the Keys have been warned for days that they must pack up and leave before Irma hits. Some defiantly stayed, vowing to ride out the storm despite the warnings that the decision may cost them their lives. 

'The message has been clear - the Keys are going to be impacted, there is no safe area within the Keys, and you put your life in your own hands by not evacuating,' Long told CNN.

The entire Florida Keys were supposed to be emptied and firefighters went door to door in mobile home parks, urging residents to get out. People who refused to evacuate were not being arrested, but were told they wouldn't be rescued once the storm arrives.

'You can call, but we're not coming,' Pinellas Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said.  

Early on Sunday morning, footage started to emerge of Key West being battered by the storm. 

Trash cans can be seen hurtling down the street in winds described as hurricane-like, trees have been ripped from the ground crushing vehicles and properties and sparks have started to fly from the powerlines above the quaint houses. 

Webcams set up for live streams of the city were wiped out before 6am as the hurricane neared.  

Shocking moment tornado forms in Florida ahead of Hurricane Irma

People take up shelter and settle down for the night on the floor of the school gym in Key West surrounded by their earthly possessions and their pets

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