Florida Keys to reopen Thursday; webcam updates

The Florida Keys, including Key West, plan to welcome back visitors Thursday after escaping the worst of Hurricane Ike, which, officials say, inflicted high winds and minor flooding but no major damage after passing well south-southwest of the resort island chain. Residents, evacuated earlier, are being allowed to return Wednesday, when local airports are expected to reopen.

To see the situation for yourself, click on live webcams from more than 20 locations posted by the Monroe County Tourist Development Council. When I checked this afternoon, they showed dark skies and deserted streets near Key West’s harbor, but the buildings looked OK.

Haiti, Cuba and other Caribbean areas, where Ike caused major damage and fatalities, were not so lucky. At 2 p.m. Pacific time today, Ike appeared to be headed for Texas or Mexico, and a tropical storm warning remained in effect for the Florida Keys from Ocean Reef to the Dry Tortugas, the National Hurricane Center reported.

If you’re headed to the Florida Keys, check with your hotel and airline for updates. Useful online sources, besides the National Hurricane Center, include websites of the tourist council, the city of Key West and Florida’s Monroe County.

— Jane Engle, assistant Los Angeles Times Travel editor

[Photo: Waves crash on the White Street pier in Key West, Florida, by Lynne Sladky / Associated Press]

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 9, 2008 at 5:24 pm by Jane Engle and is filed under Florida, Islands & Beaches, Latin America & Caribbean, News, Tips & Advice, Southern States. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.