The entire west coast of Florida, from the Keys to the capital Tallahassee in the far north, is preparing for the arrival of the hurricane Ian which could reach Category 4 strength within the next few hours.
Posted at 1:58 p.m.
“We have already been preparing for two days, indicates the mayor of Key West, Teri Johnston, joined by The Press Monday morning. We ask people to have a seven-day reserve: water, food, medicine. If they have a generator, let them check that it is in good order. At the municipality, all our non-essential vehicles have been sheltered in a high garage. We cleaned our storm drains. And approximately every three hours, we communicate with citizens to inform them of the evolution of the situation. »
What is happening in Key West is being repeated in many cities, large and small, in Florida. Thus, in Tampa, Mayor Jane Castor spoke of ongoing evacuations near the coast. “We asked people from all over Zone A which is on the edge of the coast to prepare to leave, said the latter on CNN. We have 126 miles (203 kilometers) of waterfront just for our city. People don’t need to stray too far, but stay away from the coast, because the first concern is the storm surge which could reach 2.4 meters in height. »
the hurricane Ian formed in the Caribbean Sea and passed the Cayman Islands on Monday morning. It is now en route to the western tip of Cuba and would make landfall around 8 a.m. Tuesday in the Guanahacabibes Peninsula area. The southern part of Florida will be reached as of Tuesday evening.
In the Tampa area, 25 centimeters of rain are expected with peaks of 40 centimeters in some places. Residents rushed to get supplies, water, food and sandbags.
NASA took no chances and decided to return its 98-meter-tall Artemis-1 mega-rocket to its hangar. Due to technical problems, the launch of the rocket has already been postponed several times. But the decision to bring it back to the hangar is “the right decision,” NASA associate administrator Jim Free said in a tweet.
At a press conference Monday morning, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said 5,000 National Guard members were on high alert and another 2,000 National Guard members from Tennessee, Georgia and North Carolina. stood ready to intervene. “There is nothing to panic about, but be prepared,” the governor said.
However, it is in Key West, in the very south of the state, where the storm will be felt first. Key West has 26,000 inhabitants to which are added, at present, about 20,000 tourists, including several Canadians.
PHOTO: CITY OF KAY WEST
Mayor Teri Johnston.
“For the moment, we have not declared an evacuation order. So the tourists are still here, says Mayor Johnston. The storm promises to be powerful and we anticipate a lot of rain, wind and localized flooding, which can go up to one meter. What worries me the most are the people living on the boats. They must return to land and find refuge. The port will be closed Monday evening at 10 p.m. by the Coast Guard. People off better get back. »
In Quebec
In Quebec, tour operators and airlines are also monitoring the situation closely.
“We had a flight to Cuba (Santa Clara/Cayo Coco) on Sunday and for this one we applied our hurricane policy,” said Bernard Côté, director of marketing, public relations and social media for Transat. We have created an internal unit to monitor the situation and we talk to each other several times a day. If there is a risk that the hurricane will impact our travelers, we contact them. »
In such a situation, Transat can send a plane to pick up customers on site earlier or change the dates of future trips. “We don’t want people to go to dangerous places. The priority is everyone’s safety,” says Mr. Côté.
With Associated Press and Agence France-Presse