Scramble to flee Irma underscores rich, poor divide
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Hotel dishwasher Wilman Hernandez waited with his wife and young son at a Miami Beach bus stop, desperately looking for a way to get to a shelter where they could ride out Hurricane Irma.
Hernandez fears the storm will destroy their first-floor apartment. With no car to join the bumper-to-bumper traffic heading north and no supplies other than water, their options, like those of many low-income Florida residents, were limited.
“I have been calling 311 to get information about shelters that are available and no one answers the phone,” Hernandez said. “I need to take my family off the beach and to safety.”
The scramble to flee from the path of Irma has been a much different experience for those in different income brackets.