By Jim McCarthy, Alex Rickert and Mandy Miles
A strengthening Hurricane Ian skirted past the Florida Keys beginningSept. 27, delivering storm swell and tropical storm — and indeed some hurricane- force gusts to Key West. In the Lower Keys and portions of the Middle Keys, residers woke up to submersed thoroughfares and debris.
Further than,400 Keys Energy guests were without power as of the morning ofSept. 28. Continuing high winds and fresh flooding were anticipated during the autumn high drift onSept. 28, hampering some power restoration sweats.
In the Middle Keys, waters pushed in by south winds set up numerous with oceanside places dealing with over to three bases of water under their homes on Tuesday night. Flooding was indeed more severe in Key West, with the worst storm swell on the gulf side of the Lower and Middle Keys anticipated around this paper’s print deadline on Wednesday autumn.
Greg Barroso, Key West exigency operation chief, told county officers during a coordinating call onSept. 28 that crews were dealing with everything from a major structure fire on Flagler Avenue to roads blocked by flood tide waters and fallen trees.
“ Our assessments have been bad, ” Barroso said. “ We ’re passing and imaging Wilma- suchlike damage. We surely have a lot of trees down throughout Key West, downed power lines and low- hanging power lines. Our manhole covers and our seamsters have blown off, so standing water is a concern for polluted water. ”