Royal Caribbean International’s Empress of the Seas, with 878 passengers and about 600 crew members, docked in Key West Sunday marking the first cruise ship visit since before Hurricane Irma struck the Florida Keys Sept. 10.
Florida Keys fishermen are getting help from the air to locate lobster traps lost during Hurricane Irma.
Florida Keys tourism officials said Monday they will meet Gov. Rick Scott‘s Oct. 1 deadline to reopen to visitors after Hurricane Irma pounded Monroe County.
More than $45 million in revenue is believed to have been lost when the state suspended highway toll collections to help speed evacuations and relief efforts for Hurricane Irma, Florida’s Turnpike system estimates.
Power was back as of midday Friday for all but 13,735 homes and businesses in Florida, primarily in four counties that were hit hardest by Hurricane Irma on Sept. 10 and Sept. 11, according to the state Division of Emergency Management.
Toll collections will resume at 12:01 a.m. Thursday on most state toll roads after being lifted Sept. 5 in advance of Hurricane Irma’s trek across Florida.
Dealing with wrecked belongings and reports of toxic muck, residents of a tiny town where Florida’s Everglades meet the Gulf of Mexico cleared their homes Monday in scorching 92 F (33 C) heat with no air conditioning and no electricity except from a few generators.