MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – People began heading to shelters Thursday in Miami-Dade and Broward counties ahead of Hurricane Irma.
Local 10 News reporter Neki Mohan was at the hurricane shelter at the Miami-Dade County Fair and Exposition early Thursday as only a few people were resting there.
"I don’t want to go through that experience again, you know. We live in a low-lying area," one man said.
By Thursday morning, 120 people had registered to stay at the shelter during the storm, but the facility can hold up to 500 people and 100 pets.
Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez urged residents to use the shelters as a last resort.
"These shelters should be the refuge of last resort for people who truly have no place to go," Gimenez said on Wednesday. "We encourage everyone to provide assistance to family, co-workers, friends who are on the evacuation zone."
Gimenez has ordered about 100,000 residents to leave their homes on barrier islands by Thursday afternoon.
The evacuation orders issued affect residents in Miami Beach, Key Biscayne and other coastal areas in Zones A and B that are vulnerable to storm surge.
Officials in Broward County told Local 10 News reporter Kristi Krueger that registered sexual predators would not be turned away from shelters, but would be kept in a separate area away from children.
Below is a list of shelters in Broward County:
Lyons Creek Middle School at 4333 Sol Press Blvd. in Coconut Creek.
Monarch High School at 5050 Wiles Road in Coconut Creek.
Coral Glades High School at 2700 Sportsplex Drive in Coral Springs.
Fox Trail Elementary School at 1250 Nob Hill Road in Davie.
Rock Island Elementary/ Atlantic Technical (Arthur Ashe) at 1701 N.W. 23rd Ave. in Fort Lauderdale.
Watkins Elementary School at 3520 SW 52nd Ave. in Pembroke Park.
Park Lakes Elementary School at 3925 N. State Road 7 in Lauderdale Lakes.
New Renaissance Middle School at 10701 Miramar Blvd. in Miramar.
Everglades High School at 17100 SW 48th Court in Miramar.
West Broward High School at 500 NW 209th Ave. in Pembroke Pines.
Plantation Elementary School at 651 NW 42nd Ave. in Plantation.
Pompano Beach High School at 600 NE 13th Ave. in Pompano Beach.
Falcon Cove Middle School at 4251 Bonaventure Blvd. in Weston.
Below is a list of shelters in Miami-Dade County:
North Miami Beach Senior High at 1247 NE 167th St. in North Miami.
South Miami Senior High at 6856 SW 53rd St. in South Miami.
Felix Varela Senior High at 15255 SW 96th St. in West Kendall.
The Miami-Dade County Fair and Exhibition at 10901 Coral Way, in Miami-Dade's Tamiami area. This shelter welcomes one pet per evacuee.
Miami Carol City Senior High at 3301 Miami Gardens Dr. in Miami Gardens.
Miami Central Senior High at 1781 NW 95th St. in Miami.
North Miami Senior High at 13110 NE Eighth Ave. in North Miami.
TERRA Environmental at 11005 SW 84 St. in Miami.
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