KEY WEST???? what happened there???

[Gato Moteado]

has anyone seen any reports from the middle of the night? did they get the 8 foot storm surge they were predicting? was there 8 feet of water on the island? what happened to the 80% of the population that didnt leave?

[Atman]

1. Mayor saying entire island has been overwashed

GULP. Dear god, I hope everyone is okay...this probably isn't the "fantasy fest" these people had in mind. And NO WAY IN OR OUT. Yikes.

EDIT -- Just as I posted that, CNN went to a remote from Key West, and the reporter is standing in the middle of a relatively dry street. The mayor had said Key West was similar to NOLA in that there was one higher, drier area, but virtually everything else was flooded. No word on just how deep, though. I don't think it's like 10 feet or anything that severe, but I'm only guessing. (I lived in Cocoa Beach Florida for 16 years, so I kinda know the terrain.)

[Gato Moteado]

3. right after i posted i saw cnn went live to key west....

...but as you said they broadcast from a higher drier area and we really didnt get much of an idea what the rest of the place looked like. if the island wash completely washed over, i assume they place will be trashed when it dries out. it already smelled mildewy and moldy enough in many of those bars and restaurants, i assume they will be like a swamp now.

[CottonBear]

2. CNN live now: central part of town above water, no casualties(yet).

Many (most?) areas are flooded and water is no longer rising but the flooding is extensive. Some people rescued from flooded homes and homes with trees on roofs.

[Pepper32]

4. According to CNN

Homes are flooded. Some people are panicking because they thought the water would keep rising, like in NO. However, the police assured them they would be OK.

Basically, it's still early and they are still accessing the situation. So far no casualties reported in Key West.

I hope it stays that way.

[Kagemusha]

5. Fortunately, islands are naturally ABOVE sea level.

That's why they're islands...

[Gato Moteado]

8. yeah, but the highest point on key west.....

....is only about 18 inches above sea level

[Kagemusha]

14. Better than below it, that's all.

nt

[Fla Dem]

16. Highest point on Key West is 11 feet above sea level, but they were

predicting flood tides of 9-15 feet.

[Gato Moteado]

7. no casualties....thank god.....

i was expecting the worst after hearing they were gonna get an 8 foot storm surge and 80% of the residents stayed there.

[djack23]

9. Why can't they just evacuate?

[Gato Moteado]

12. well they could have before the storm.....

but its impossible now. there's only one road into key west and traffic is a bitch going in and out of there on a regular day. now the road is impassable.

[KharmaTrain]

15. There Was A Mandatory Evacuation Order...Only 20% Left

It's a long 6-hour drive up to Homestead and then onto Miami...and then where to go?

This is at least the fifth time I can recall there's been a hurricane emergency or evacuation in that area and, except for Rita...that came on the heels of Katrina...many residents really didn't head inland.

The way things look...heading into Dade and Broward County wouldn't be such a smooth move right now...they're getting pounded with 100 MPH winds.

The scary part here is the greatest damage could be to areas where people didn't expect much of a storm...the east coast from Miami north to Palm Beach.

[ProfessorGAC]

10. EEEEEEEP!

We have a friend who lives in Key West about a mile east of, and 4 blocks north of the high school. (The Hemingway mansion is almost exactly half-way from her house to downtown.)

I heard there were potential problems from a storm hit, but this is worse than what i heard predicted. Gonna have to get hold of her.
The Professor

[highplainsdem]

6. I heard that there are 2-3 feet of water in downtown Key West, and

the water's rising.

[Gato Moteado]

11. the water should be receding by now

the storm is gone from there

[highplainsdem]

13. This was about an hour ago, and they were reporting what the

police chief had told them.

Editing to add that I've been watching CNN. I'm trying to find some links to news stories on the flooding.

[highplainsdem]

18. Link to a news story mentioning flood waters 5 feet deep:

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000086&sid=atYe2AWJKC10&refer=latin_america


Keys Flooded

The whole south side of Key West was flooded with about 5 feet of water, with some streets turned into rivers, Monroe County spokesman John Ellsworth said. The county, which includes the Keys, is the southernmost in the continental U.S. He said the storm should clear out of the region by noon.

The back end of Wilma will probably flood all the islands in the county, Ellsworth said. Traffic reports suggest many of the Keys' 60,000 residents didn't leave ahead of the storm, he said.

``This is worse than the other three'' storms that have hit the Keys this year, Ellsworth said in an interview from Marathon, referring to Hurricanes Dennis, Katrina and Rita.

[Ready4Change]

17. Key West is above sea level. No levees to break

Flood waters will recede far quicker in most areas than in NOLA.

Once the storm is past they should be relatively safe from drowning. Then they worry about exposure, dehydration, food, health.

[SaveElmer]

19. The "Canary in the Coal Mine"

We will know Key West is getting back to normal when the Hog Cam comes back online!!!

The Conch Republic has been through this before, they know how to handle it!!!

http://hogsbreath.com/hogcam/

[highplainsdem]

20. Link to keynews.com's Hurricane Edition, with latest stories:

http://www.keysnews.com/hurricaneedition/


Currently the latest stories there are

"Sun rises on storm-drenched Keys" (8:30 am)
http://www.keysnews.com/hurricaneedition/1024_MorningUpdate.htm

"Surge causes more damage than wind in Key West" (12:30 pm)
http://www.keysnews.com/hurricaneedition/1024_KWflooding.htm

"Residents asked to stay put while damage is assessed" (2 pm update)
http://www.keysnews.com/hurricaneedition/1024_NewmanUpdate.htm