In Miami, People Brace For Arrival Of Hurricane Irma

People in Miami-Dade County, Fla., are preparing for the arrival of Hurricane Irma this weekend. The storm was downgraded to a Category 4 storm on Friday at it ripped through the Turks and Caicos Islands.

ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

Construction companies across South Florida are scrambling to dismantle cranes and to take down scaffolding at business sites.

WILLIAM CUESTA: Your drywall, any kind of, you know, nails or miscellaneous materials that's going to be used all have to be either picked up, hauled away and - or bolted down.

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

William Cuesta is vice president of Cuesta Construction in Miami. He's broken down 10 building sites in advance of Hurricane Irma's arrival. Strong winds could knock over cranes and blow scaffolding into surrounding neighborhoods.

CUESTA: We got a large amount of plywood. We actually donated it. So we made an announcement. Somebody posted it on Facebook. And we had a line of people going out there and to receive the plywood that we were giving away.

SIEGEL: All of that plywood's in demand right now. People are using it to board up their windows before the storm. NPR wants to hear how you are preparing for Hurricane Irma. Contact us at npr.org/irma, or you can also email us at irma@npr.org.

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