After brush with Ian, Florida Keys getting back to normal
KEY WEST - The Florida Keys are getting back to normal after a brush with Hurricane Ian.
The island chain's infrastructure is generally operating normally and Key West International Airport reopened to commercial service Thursday.
Visitors disembarked from an American Airlines flight Thursday morning in Key West, as city crews worked to remove downed tree limbs and cleanse debris from streets and landmarks including the famed Southernmost Point.
Key West was the most impacted area of the 125-mile-long contiguous Keys island chain, while the Upper and Middle Keys experienced fewer effects because Ian passed further west of those areas.
One family on Stock Island, adjacent to Key West, got a surprise as they cleaned seaweed from around a boat ramp: a green sea turtle hatchling buried in about a foot of seaweed.
Eight-year-old Khannan Mellies and his family promptly named the tiny turtle "Ian," and it was taken to the Turtle Hospital in Marathon for care and an eventual release back into the wild.
Thursday afternoon, electrical power had been restored to all but about 60 customers in Key West and was fully operational throughout the other Keys. Freshwater delivery from the local aqueduct authority was operational throughout the storm.
Traffic was moving freely on the Florida Keys Overseas Highway, according to the Monroe County Sheriff's Office.
Almost all Keys lodging establishments escaped significant storm impact and are open, tourism officials reported. Keys attractions, watersports operations, state parks, restaurants and bars are open or reopening.
No mandatory visitor or resident evacuation orders were issued by the Keys' emergency management office during Ian's passage, because sustained hurricane-force winds were not forecasted for the region.
