South Florida evacuates as Ike nears

The Florida Division of Emergency Management issued a 7 a.m. advisory Sunday about Hurricane Ike, a Cat 4 on the Saffir-Simpson scale and everyone in the Keys is surely hoping to duck this monster storm. FDEM said: “The middle and lower Florida Keys currently lie within the 3 day error cone. Marathon and Key West currently have a 13%-18% probability of receiving hurricane force winds and a 60%-65% probability of receiving tropical storm force winds within the next 5 days. Hurricane watches could be posted for portions of the Florida Keys and South Florida later today or early on Monday.” The National Weather Service issued an 11 a.m. Sunday advisory.

NWS says:  “Ike is moving toward the west near 13 mph…a west to west-southwest motion is expected to continue today with a turn toward the west-northwest expected on Monday. On this track…the core of the hurricane will move through the southeastern Bahamas today and move near or over eastern Cuba tonight…and near or over central Cuba late Monday.”

The worst hurricane I ever lived through was Hugo in 1989—it came ashore on the South Carolina coast with winds of 138 mph. I remember sitting under my grandmother’s old upright piano with our older daughter and my husband. I was 3 weeks away from delivering our younger daughter. The storm impacted us personally and financially—it took several years for us to recover. I hope I never experience that again, but with nature, there are no guarantees.

Hurricane Ike will be a weather-maker story early in the week for Florida and the Gulf. Evacuations began in the Keys and Key West Sunday morning. For possibilities and analysis, visit the National Weather Service discussion page and also check the FDEM page.

NWS issued this 5-day cone Sunday at 11 a.m. If you're in the affected area, you should monitor these advisories closely.