Tag Archives: Florida Keys

AP: Florida Ocean Temperature Hits “Hot Tub Level”

The Associated Press reports: The water temperature on the tip of Florida hit hot tub levels, exceeding 100 degrees (37.8 degrees Celsius) two days in a row. And meteorologists say that could potentially be the hottest seawater ever measured, although there are some issues with the reading. The initial reading on a buoy at Manatee Bay hit 101.1 degrees (38.4 …

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Warm Water Is Bleaching Florida’s Coral Reefs [VIDEO]

The Associated Press reports: Some Florida Keys coral reefs are losing their color weeks earlier than normal this summer because of record-high water temperatures, meaning they are under stress and their health is potentially endangered, federal scientists said. The corals should be vibrant and colorful this time of year, but are swiftly going white, said Katey Lesneski, research and monitoring …

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Genetically-Modified Mosquitoes To Be Released In Keys

Via press release from Friends of the Earth: The Florida Keys Mosquito Control District (FKMCD) and Oxitec, a British biotech company, will begin the first-ever U.S. release of genetically engineered (GE) Aedes aegypti mosquitoes this week. Despite scientific concerns and public outcry over the human health and environment risks, the field trial’s first phase will release up to 144,000 GE …

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Florida Keys May Close Again, Beaches Now Off Limits

Miami’s PBS affiliate reports: Spiking coronavirus numbers in the Florida Keys are causing consternation among public officials, and questions about whether the county will once again close to visitors. “We were fortunate for the time we had the checkpoint up and you saw what the results were. We did a really good job. The community was behind it,” Bob Eadie, …

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Florida Keys To Lift Tourist Roadblocks On June 1st

USA Today reports: The Florida Keys will reopen to tourists on June 1, more than two months after the island chain closed to visitors to minimize the spread of the coronavirus. Checkpoints that barred visitors from coming into the Florida Keys will be removed next month and hotels and other lodging establishments, including campgrounds and vacation rentals, will also be …

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FLORIDA: Key West Reopens For Tourists

USA Today reports: Two weeks after Hurricane Irma devastated the Florida Keys, the first cruise ship docked Sunday in this southernmost city, providing the first boost of tourist dollars to the storm-ravaged area. Key West Mayor Craig Cates said he agonized over the appropriate time to welcome tourists against to his city, which was spared from the worst of Irma’s …

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KEY WEST: Island House Reports Being “Safe And Sound” After Hurricane Irma, Ready For Business Soon

Many JMG readers have written me over the last week, hoping for some inside scoop on the status of Key West’s Island House and the other popular gay guesthouses that are their Old Town neighbors. Today, we actually have some positive hurricane-related news. Via press release: Feeling humbled by our good luck, we’re happy to announce that the Island House, …

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FLORIDA: All Keys Residents May Return Tomorrow

The Miami Herald reports: All Monroe County residents will be able to return to the Keys Sunday. This includes those who live in severely hard-hit areas of the Lower Keys between Key West and Marathon. Residents of the Middle Keys will be allowed to return Saturday morning, said Roman Gastesi, county administrator, during a Saturday morning conference call with other …

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KEY WEST: Gay Bar Owner Feeds Hundreds

The Palm Beach Post reports: After 25 years in Key West, Jim Gilleran knows residents need a cold beer, a hot meal and a place to reconnect after a hurricane. While most bars and restaurants remain shuttered on Duval Street, Gilleran opened his 801 Bar hours after Hurricane Irma smashed past the island. He’s kept his generator operating since, serving …

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KEY WEST: US Military Delivers Rations And Water

The Palm Beach Post reports: As life returns to a small semblance of normal in the Upper Keys, normal is still far off for residents living in the Middle and Lower Keys, where the usually raucous town of Key West was boarded up and shut down. The Marathon Airport took on the look of a disaster on foreign soil as …

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FEMA: 25% Of Homes Destroyed In Florida Keys

CNN reports: Initial estimates indicate 25% of the houses in the Florida Keys have been destroyed, and 65% have major damage, said Brock Long, the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s administrator. Basically, every house in the Keys was impacted some way,” Long said Tuesday. He said the numbers are early estimates and could change. Irma left a trail of devastation throughout …

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Florida Keys Evacuees Barred From Immediate Return

Reuters reports: Residents who fled the Florida Keys in anticipation of Hurricane Irma’s wrath were told they could not return to their island homes on Monday, news that angered evacuees anxious to get back to assess the damage. Authorities reported widespread damage on the archipelago off the tip of southern Florida. At the White House, U.S. Homeland Security Adviser Tom …

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Irma Makes Landfall Near Key West As Category 4, Power Out For Over 1 Million Across Florida [VIDEO]

The Associated Press reports: Announcing itself with roaring 130 mph winds, Hurricane Irma plowed into the mostly emptied-out Florida Keys early Sunday for the start of what could be a slow, ruinous march up the state’s west coast toward the heavily populated Tampa-St. Petersburg area. “The most important thing is to pray for us,” Gov. Rick Scott said on NBC. …

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