After Hurricane Irma, FEMA estimates 25 percent of Florida Keys homes are gone

[riversedge]

Source: al.com



Updated on September 12, 2017 at 7:37 PM Posted on September 12, 2017 at 7:36 PM



By Associated Press

LOWER MATECUMBE KEY, Fla. -- With 25 percent of the homes in the Florida Keys feared destroyed, emergency workers Tuesday rushed to find Hurricane Irma's victims -- dead or alive -- and deliver food and water to the stricken island chain.

As crews labored to repair the lone highway connecting the Keys, residents of some of the islands closest to Florida's mainland were allowed to return and get their first look at the devastation.

"It's going to be pretty hard for those coming home," said Petrona Hernandez, whose concrete home on Plantation Key with 35-foot walls was unscathed, unlike others a few blocks away. "It's going to be devastating to them."

But because of disrupted phone service and other damage, the full extent of the destruction was still a question mark, more than two days after Irma roared into the Keys with 130 mph (209 kph) winds.

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Read more: http://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2017/09/after_hurricane_irma_fema_esti.html#incart_river_home?li_source=base&li_medium=default-widget

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Gallery: Hurricane Irma devastates the Florida Keys






Hurricane Irma by the numbers: 16 million power outages, 142 mph winds



Posted September 12, 2017 at 11:51 AM | Updated September 12, 2017 at 11:51 AM
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APTOPIX Cuba Hurricane Irma
Irma left behind shocking statistics

One-time monster Hurricane Irma has weakened to just a remnant circulation over Alabama but has left behind a plethora of astonishing weather records and statistics. Below find some of the most stunning numbers that help quantify the magnitude of this storm and its impact, from the eastern Atlantic Ocean to Florida to Georgia and South Carolina.
Ramon Espinosa



Hurricane Irma
16 million without power

16 million: The number of customers potentially without power in the Southeast, the most of any hurricane on record, doubling the 8.1 million in Superstorm Sandy. The 15 million outages in Florida represents three-quarters of its population.

Totals by state:

15 million outages in Florida

800,000 outages in Georgia

270,000 outages in South Carolina
David Goldman.................................

http://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2017/09/hurricane_irma_by_the_numbers.html








16 inches of rain

16 inches: The highest rainfall total in the United States, reported in Fort Pierce, Fla. Other top totals:

[machoneman]

1. I do....

feel sorry for all FL residents affected. The pic above shows how capricious the storm can be, as the blue sided home looks unscathed while the others are severely damaged. Still, the massive overbuilding since Andrew, even with better building codes, shows that the outer 'ring' of islands and beach homes were targets for more damage than the owners ever imagined.

I wonder how just badly places like Marco Island and other low-lying areas outside the Inter-Coastal waterway were affected. We'll soon see with more pics but by gosh many of these areas should NEVER have been allowed to develop at all.

http://www.slate.com/articles/business/metropolis/2017/09/irma_made_marco_island_a_symbol.html

[Eugene]

2. Hurricane Irma death toll rises, 90 percent of homes damaged in Florida Keys

Source: ABC News

Hurricane Irma death toll rises, 90 percent of homes damaged in Florida Keys

By MARK OSBORNE • Sep 13, 2017, 9:14 AM ET

As the death toll from Hurricane Irma climbs to 23 in the United States, residents of the Florida Keys are returning to a much different landscape from the one they left last week.

As many as 25 percent of homes in the Keys were destroyed, Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Brock Long said Tuesday evening, and as many as 65 percent of homes suffered major damage.

According to FEMA, 90 percent of homes in the Florida Keys suffered some damage.

Officials from Monroe County, which includes the Keys, were quick to counter FEMA estimates on Tuesday night, saying no official estimates of damage percentages or costs have been made.

"Things look real damaged from the air, but when you clear the trees and all the debris, it's not much damage to the houses," Monroe County Commissioner Heather Carruthers said in a statement released by the county Tuesday night.

-snip-

Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/US/fema-90-percent-homes-florida-keys-damaged-hurricane/story?id=49814367

[B2G]

4. Heather Carruthers is a total idiot.

It's almost like she has no clue about what's going on down there. Someone needs to acquaint her with Google.

[Bengus81]

3. FAKE NEWS!!! Pillboy said Irma was all Liberal BS

Climate change,warnings that are bogus,liberal agenda blah blah blah said that fat ass POS.