09/25/2022
Monroe County Emergency Management is coordinating with the National Weather Service – Key West to advise residents on specific details.
“At this time, we will not be making any evacuation decisions, sheltering, or subsequent protective measures,” said Monroe County Emergency Management Director Shannon Weiner. “We will reevaluate today at 3 p.m.”
• County government offices will be open on Monday.
• Airports are open.
From the National Weather Service – Key West: Tropical Storm Ian is forecast to intensify to hurricane strength late Sunday or Sunday night as it turns toward the northwest into the northwest Caribbean Sea. Ian is expected to turn toward the north northwest by late Monday while approaching western Cuba.
Ian is currently forecast to reach major hurricane (category 3) strength while moving northward towards the southeast Gulf of Mexico near the latitude of the Florida Keys.
Tropical storm force winds could arrive as early as early Monday evening. Therefore, any preparations should be complete by Monday afternoon. Hurricane-force winds are also possible for some portions of the middle and lower Florida Keys, with the most likely time frame for the roughest weather midday Tuesday through Tuesday night.
“It is still a little too early to discuss the magnitude of specific impacts to the Florida Keys at this time,” said National Weather Service - Key West’s Jon Rizzo. “However, this information is expected to become somewhat clearer beginning later today.”
Potential impacts include:
• Storm Surge
• Damaging winds
• Flooding rainfall
• The threat for isolated tornadoes in rain bands.
Please monitor future forecasts and briefings extremely closely. Review your tropical cyclone preparedness plans now and ensure your emergency supply kit is well-stocked. If your plans include several days worth of preparedness actions, be sure to begin your actions as soon as possible.
Please note:
• The County does NOT supply sandbags to residents. With our type of flooding issues, sandbags have proven to be insufficient in the past.
Hurricane preparation information can be found at www.monroecountyem.com. For tourism, visit www.fla-keys.com. To get emergency information about the storm, sign up for Alert!Monroe at www.monroecountyem.com. Detailed County-wide storm information can be found at www.monroecountyem.com/JIC.
