News Blip: Florida Keys Hit Hard By Irma
Woodalls Reports On The Destruction Left Behind By Hurricane Irma, Starting With The Florida Keys And How Campgrounds Were Affected
As Ben Quiggle of WCM states, residents in south Florida are starting to assess the damage after Hurricane Irma ripped through the state with 130 mph winds and left some areas completely cut off from power and water. The Associated Press was reporting Tuesday (Sept. 12) that some residents were being allowed back onto some of the islands that form the Florida Keys, which took the brunt of Irma’s power.
Bobby Cornwell, president and CEO of the Florida Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds (FARVC), said that the Keys are where his biggest concern lies. “I have not heard anything from park owners down in the Keys,” he told Woodall’s Campground Management (WCM). Damage throughout the rest of the state varies and Cornwell said that it looks as though a lot of parks missed serious damage. In St. Augustine, Cornwell said that he talked with George Lempenau, owner of Arcadia Peace River Campground and director of FARVC’s southwest region, who is dealing with rising water. In Fort Meyers, on the southwest side of Florida, Cornwell said he was surprised how well parks were able to fair the storm. He said that trees and power poles were down, but that the few owners he talked with reported very minor damage with sites still intact. In Kissimmee, Fla., the Orlando/Kissimmee Kampgrounds of America (KOA) suffered very minor damage. Matthew Koromhas, general manager of the park, said that there was some tree debris, but nothing like what parks are facing in the Keys.