Sep 7, 2008 3:00 pm US/Eastern
Fla. Keys Residents Evacuated Ahead Of Ike
KEY WEST, Fla. (CBS) ―
Mandatory evacuations for all residents of the Florida Keys began at 8 a.m. Sunday as the dangerous Category 4 Hurricane Ike closed in on the chain of islands, CBS station WFOR-TV reported.
The order came on the heels of Saturday's effort to evacuate all tourists from the Keys.
"Everybody's trying to make the right decision. The residents of Key West and Monroe County will take the advice of elected leaders to evacuate and keep their families safe," Key west Mayor Morgan McPherson said. "It's time to move; this storm is right over Cuba. It's so close to us. If it takes that jog to the north, there could be significant damage to the eastern sid," another said.
CBS station WFOR-TV reported that Keys officials had hoped to cancel plans to evacuate the islands as the path of Ike
moved the storm further from South Florida, but in the end decided to
err on the side of caution and order residents to get out. They made their decision shortly after 5 a.m. Sunday after seeing the latest advisory from the National Hurricane Center.
"It's Frustrating. It's Expensive," Key west McPherson told WFOR-TV. "But in the end, safety is our primary concern."
The mandatory evacuation means there will be no shelter available in the Keys. The official shelter for Keys residents is in west Miami-Date at the FIU campus, and any residents who remain behind are being told they will be responsible foe their own safety.
While the tourist evacuation of the Keys Saturday covered the entire chain, Sunday's resident evacuations will be carried out in a staged manner.
Residents of Key West and the lower Keys will be asked to leave starting at 8 a.m. Sunday. People who live in the Middle Keys and the Marathon area will be asked to wait until noon, and residents of the Upper Keys, who have the least distance to travel to safety, are asked to evacuate staring at 4 p.m.
Tolls northbound on the Florida Turnpike, the Sawgrass Expressway, and Alligator Alley have been lifted to ease evacuation.
Residents who don't have transportation will be able to take shuttle buses to the mainland.
With the evacuation order, schools in Monroe County have been ordered closed Monday and Tuesday. Government offices will be closed Monday, and other closing announcements are expected.
Emergency officials are urging Keys residents not to ignore the evacuation order. Should the Keys see hurricane force winds, bridges will be closed and residents will not be allowed to leave until the storm has passed.
Tourists should already be gone. Their evacuation order is still in effect. Some of the lucky were able to catch a flight out. "Of course the hurricane's coming in, so we were told to evacuate. So we're getting a flight out, we'd like to stay longer, but we couldn't take a chance," said tourist Jeanette Mormon.
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