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

SeaWorld also took in the five adult male dolphins from Dolphin Discovery in Duck Key, where officials said they will stay 'until they can be safely returned to their home in the Florida Keys'.

Irma provided another reminder of what hurricanes have done to the state's ecosystem. A quarter of a century after Hurricane Andrew, its impact is still seen in the Everglades, where the invasive Burmese pythons decimating populations of native mammals are believed to be descended from exotic snake breeding facilities that were destroyed in the wind.

Most exotic animals that wandered loose in Andrew's wake were recovered, but not the pythons.

With only very large alligators to challenge them, the pythons have thrived in the wetlands. Estimates range from 10,000 to 100,000, but their presence can be seen in the near-total absence of rabbits or other small animals reported by hunters who are now paid by the state to kill the snakes.

In the largest evacuation effort in US history, millions of people in the Sunshine State and in parts of Georgia have been told to leave their home before Irma strikes on Sunday afternoon.

All of southern Florida is under either a hurricane watch or warning and there will be severe weather in more northern parts of the state.

On Saturday, Miami officials warned people who have already fled their homes not to return despite Irma's change in course.

A curfew is in place in the city to deter people from going outside and mandatory evacuation orders are still in place in Miami Dade County and other surrounding areas.

It will last from 7pm until 7am in the City of Miami but others are also being introdcued Mayor Tomás Pedro Regalado told a press conference on Saturday that it was designed to prevent looting which was seen in Hurricane Katrina and Wilma.

'There are many empty homes in the city of Miami and we saw with Katrina and Wilma, bad people used the fact there was a storm and that there was confusion and they broke into houses, into cars.'

Evacueesfill Germain Arena, which is being used as a fallout shelter, in advance of Hurricane Irma in Estero, Florida