ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — No place is more vulnerable to hurricanes in the 50 U.S. states than the Florida Keys.
The chain of islands celebrated by singer Jimmy Buffett in his odes to tropical escapism is surrounded by water, jutting out 120 miles southwesterly from Florida’s mainland to Key West with the Gulf and Atlantic Ocean on either side.
The archipelago historically has been known for its quirky and libertarian inhabitants who revel in the islands’ hedonistic, artistic and outdoorsy lifestyle. In recent years, it also has become a haven for the wealthy.
Overseeing safety for the more than 80,000 inhabitants of the Conch Republic — the nickname for the islands after denizens declared a tongue-in-cheek secession from the United States in the early 1980s — is Shannon Weiner, director of emergency management for Monroe County, Florida.
The Atlantic hurricane season starts June 1, and the county has some new weapons this season, including a brand-new emergency operations center and a new seawater desalination water treatment plant. The county also relies on surveillance flights from hurricane-hunting aircraft from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for information about how to prepare.
But, the potential for a catastrophic storm like Hurricane Irma in 2017 is always at the back of residents’ minds. The Category 4 storm made landfall in the Florida Keys with winds up to 132 mph (209.2 kph), destroying around 1,180 homes and seriously damaging another 3,000.
Weiner recently talked to the Associated Press about the upcoming hurricane season. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
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