Key West Island News
Hurricane Irma Anniversary
It’s been five years since Hurricane Irma and the Florida Keys faced off in a wind-and-water war that left Key West relatively unharmed — and the middle Keys devastated. We are recovering; some keys faster than others. But the emotional scars remain, sometimes hidden behind smiling faces.
We begin with her first posts on Sept. 5, 2017, as her husband, Ed Cunningham, the park ranger and Cat 5 Dada, completed hurricane preparations, through today as Key West and the Keys continue to recover.
Miss Molly, one of the Cat 5s who rode out Hurricane Irma, says “I’m still here.”
Timeline coverage | September 2017
Hurricane Irma | Key West news from and for locals
Key West has dreaded this storm for three decades. There are thousands of residents who've never known much more than a tropical storm. That's about to end in spectacular fashion as Hurricane Irma heads to the Keys.. A few days ago, I hopped a...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 5, 2017 | 0 Comments
Compare Hurricane Wilma to Hurricane Irma
"The impact of Wilma upon Key West was as if it'd been a direct hit from a Category I hurricane." It's been decades -- literally time out of mind -- since a major hurricane has broadsided Key West. That's made us a bit complacent, not...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 5, 2017 | 0 Comments
Photo Gallery: What does Key West look like without its tourists?
Wednesday night after supper, Ed walked to downtown Key West. Though we live less than a mile from the wild and wonderful tourist destinations, our home is in The Meadows, one of Key West's quietest neighborhoods, filled with...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 7, 2017 | 13 Comments
Cat 5s: It’s official. Ed and the Cat 5s are on-island
See that map right up there? It says the state of Florida is in this dance with Hurricane Irma. Please note that the only place in southern Florida that's not in red or orange is Key West. That's in part why Ed and the Cat 5s are staying...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 7, 2017 | 17 Comments
Where the heck IS Key West?
Where is Key West? Thought a little geography lesson might be helpful. See that blue dot down at the bottom? That's Key West. Our island is 163.8 miles southwest of Miami. Tampa on the west coast is closer to Melbourne on the east coast (145...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 8, 2017 | 0 Comments
One day before Irma “visits” and watching from Virginia
Good evening, Key West friends and strangers. It's hard to sit here in the Shenandoah Valley as my husband, the Cat 5s, our friends and strangers-soon-to-be-friends await the approach of Hurricane Irma, likely sometime tomorrow. Ed's...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 8, 2017 | 0 Comments
Saturday morning: I love my son
My son, Lee, and his family live in Atlanta. He's a most splendid man. So I share this post from his Facebook feed this morning....
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 9, 2017 | 0 Comments
Cat 5s: Mid-morning in Key West; awaiting Hurricane Irma
Saturday, 11:24 a.m. UPDATE: Change of plans. Ed is getting the cats settled in the house and then will head to Sheila's for the duration. She's two-plus floors up and in a bunker building. There's a bunch of them crammed into a small space,...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 9, 2017 | 5 Comments
Hurricane Irma: Saturday evening. Storm approaches Key West. Waiting. Waiting.
The first power failures came in Key West at 4:14 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 9, 2017. About 900 customers in the blocks around Bertha Street between Flagler and the Atlantic went dark.They'll be joined, likely well before midnight, by the rest of Key...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 9, 2017 | 4 Comments
Hurricane Irma: End of day one in Key West. What we know and don’t
Whew..... What a difference 24 hours makes. Was that a cliche or what? Sorry. I am pretty much bushed, so you're going to have to ignore the unedited writing. Before I call it a night, I wanted to capture the day's highlights, what we know about...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 11, 2017 | 80 Comments
Hurricane Irma: Sept. 11, 2017: End of Day Two. Learning more
Tutu-Making Party! A couple weeks ago, Sheila Cullen, Cheryl Rollings and I threw ourselves a flamingo-pink tutu making party. We're still hoping to wear them in the locals parade for Fantasy Fest, but, heck, in Key West a tutu is appropriate...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 11, 2017 | 0 Comments
Hurricane Irma: Sept. 12, 2017: Camping in Key West
Been thinking today that our collective sense of relief that Hurricane Irma in Key West "wasn't as bad as it could have been" might be lulling us into a false euphoria over what we're going to find when we finally get back...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 12, 2017 | 15 Comments
Hurricane Irma: 9-13-17: The Cat 5s and their dad report from Key West
Nothing like imagining Ed Cunningham and Richard Matson wandering around Key West looking for ice so they can make a vodka martini. But that's the headline from "my boys" as they camp-a-cane in The Meadows today. Follow them as they make the best of Hurricane Irma in Key West.
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 13, 2017 | 11 Comments
Hurricane Irma: Top 10 things to tell on-island people in Key West on your next call
The folks who are on-island in Key West following Hurricane Irma have limited access to information. We out here in the land of waiting-and-watching actually know more than our friends and families in Key West. So, as cell service is restored,...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 13, 2017 | 1 Comment
Hurricane Irma: Sept. 13-17: Key West clean-up. Tempers fray. Frustrations increase. Time for Cat 5 pictures
Internet trolls are like Key West iguanas. Not even Hurricane Irma kills 'em. You knew it was going to happen. After the adrenaline surge of that pounding storm; after we confirmed Key West was (sorta) OK; after we wore out our welcome with our...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 13, 2017 | 12 Comments
Hurricane Irma: 9-14-17: Cutting down trees, piling up brush, restoring Fort Zach
Fort Zachary Taylor State Park Fort Zachary Taylor State Park ranger Ed Cunningham went back to work today cutting brush, removing trees, piling debris and trying awfully hard to handle his grief over the devastation of the park. He told me...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 14, 2017 | 17 Comments
Hurricane Irma: 9-15-17: Ready to come home to Key West? Maybe Sunday
What we know, what we don't and what we think we know We only know one thing tonight: The slog of restoring a sliver of normalcy to Key West after Hurricane Irma continues. Progress is astounding thanks to scores of men and women who do what...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 15, 2017 | 10 Comments
Hurricane Irma | 9-16-17: This Key West homecoming ain’t some kind of “glamping”
Home! You can go home on Sunday. Though why in the world you would escapes me tonight. Monroe County officials told off-island folks today they could return to the Lower Keys, including Key West, Sunday morning. That "welcome home" is filled...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 16, 2017 | 1 Comment
Hurricane Irma: 9-17-17: Has it only been seven days?
For seven days we have shared the (cliche alert) roller coaster that began with believing Key West and the Keys might be spared the worst of Hurricane Irma as the predicted path of the Category 4 storm headed up the east coast of Florida. Wibble...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 17, 2017 | 13 Comments
Hurricane Irma: 9-18-17: Please stay home for a couple three weeks
When your town's paychecks depend on tourists, second home owners and vacation rentals, it's downright discourteous to say "Y'all stay the heck out of here." For sure, no one that gets paid to promote tourism in the Keys is gonna put it that...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 18, 2017 | 7 Comments
Hurricane Irma: Our choices for best Keys news sources
As John Teets and I wind down our coverage of Hurricane Irma, we know many of our followers want to stay connected to the latest news and updates. We’ve gathered what we consider the best, most reliable and most credible sources,...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 20, 2017 | 0 Comments
Hurricane Irma: Our choices for best Keys charities
The temptation is to pack up supplies to send. Resist. Make a cash donation to a reputable, local charitable organization. Supplies, no matter how well intentioned, too often end in towering piles with no efficient way of distributing...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 20, 2017 | 2 Comments
Hurricane Irma: Meet John Teets without whom there would be trolls
By John Teets The man behind those personal messages and comments Hi, everybody. I’m John Teets. Linda Grist Cunningham has been Penn and I’ve been Teller since just after this thing started. I’ve stood quietly to the side doing...
Linda Grist Cunningham | Sep 22, 2017 | 7 Comments
Hurricane news after 2017
Florida hurricanes | Let’s stop pretending we ought to rebuild so that we “can get back to normal”
Each year in the 1950s and '60s, my grandparents left western Pennsylvania for the winter, pulling a trailer they then parked in one or another tiny crossroads towns that were then west coast...
Hurricane Ian | Just a tropical storm? Don’t kid yourself.
Ranger Ed and I should make a pact that we won't tell anyone about our visit overnight Tuesday with soon-to-become Hurricane Ian. Our sturdy little mid-1950s concrete block bungalow is so...
Hurricane Irma | 5 years that changed Key West and the Keys
Once a month I drive to Marathon and back for a board meeting. I've done that since before Hurricane Irma clobbered Key West and the Florida Keys on Sept. 10, 2017. For five years that 100 mile...
Awaiting Hurricane Dorian from 300 miles away and worrying about the Abacos
Ominously odd air wraps around Key West this morning. Friend John Teets says "it almost feels viscous." Apt word... Even if one didn't know there were a hurricane way off in the distance, one...
Who we? Worry? Why Key West should pay attention to Hurricane Dorian
Did you hear that collective sigh of almost-relief across Key West this morning? That's 25,000 or so of us diving into the overnight and 5 a.m., updates from the hurricane center. Looks like,...
Where the heck IS Key West? A geography lesson for hurricane watchers
Dear off-island friends and family, We're OK. Really. We are. Just because the weather folks are going nuts speculating that Florida is square in the cone of soon-to-be Hurricane Dorian does not...
Hurricane Irma: 9-23-17: Closing up shop. Saying Godspeed. Going home to the Cat 5s
When we launched Key West Hurricane Irma, our online news coverage, we weren’t sure when “quit” would happen. We were confident we'd know. Today is the anniversary of knowing. It was time to wish our house guests farewell and Godspeed.
Hurricane Irma | One year ago, we awaited the storm
Why did so many decide to stay on the island, defying the mandatory Hurricane Irma evacuation orders and flirting with destruction? The answers are as complicated as the Keys. Re-reading my 2017 columns reminded me just how powerful we were as an online community. To each of you who followed along, who shared your stories and your tears, I say "thank you." It was a tough time. It's been a tough year.