Hurricane Irma is making oceans vanish before the flooding
Before the water rushes in, it disappears.
Tampa Bay, Florida, is expected to see potentially catastrophic flooding on Sunday as Hurricane Irma roars into the city, but Irma's vastness and intensely low pressure have vacuumed water away from parts of Florida's western coast ahead of the coming inundation.
That doesn't mean there's going to be a tsunami in Tampa Bay, but it does show just how strong this storm is -- and, once the water returns, you still won't want to be caught standing in what is usually the bay.
But, as people do, some folks ventured out anyway.
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Seeing a giant body of water recede like that is shocking even to folks who don't live in the area, but with Irma, it wasn't exactly unexpected.
Before the hurricane smashed into the Bahamas, it pulled back the ocean.
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Irma has already flooded the streets of Miami on Sunday, even though the city sits on Florida's southeast -- away from the main force of the storm. Tampa is on the state's west, where Irma is expected to do greater damage.
Colin is Mashable's US & World Reporter. He previously interned at Foreign Policy magazine and The American Prospect. Colin is a graduate from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. When he's not at Mashable, you can most likely find him eating or playing some kind of sport.
