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Wilma Hits Florida as Category 3 Storm
Written by
Lesly C. Simmons
, Staff Writer, RedCross.org
Monday, October 24, 2005 — ORLANDO — Hurricane Wilma made landfall Monday morning near Cape Romano in Collier County at 6:30 a.m., as a Category 3 storm with winds around 110 mph, taking out roofs, trees and power lines along the way.
Reports of damage are incomplete at this time as the storm is still moving across the state, and damage assessments are delayed until it passes completely. By 9 a.m., Wilma fell to a Category 2 storm, but just barely, and still sustained significant winds with reports of major flooding. Thousands of Floridians who decided not to ride out the storm in their homes filled American Red Cross shelters across central and northern Florida.
Tornadoes were reported in Brevard County in central Florida, with at least two touching down. Early reports indicate 2.2 million homes are without power, but thousands of power crew members are on standby to begin the restoration process once the weather clears.
In a Monday morning press conference, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush urged residents of his state to stay put, whether sheltering in place in their homes or taking refuge in evacuation shelters, until the storm has completely left the state.
“Continue to monitor the media and heed warnings of local officials because conditions outside continue to be dangerous,” said Bush. “Please stay hunkered down and let emergency teams do their job. We have an emergency team that is second to none.”
Despite everything the U.S. has seen during this year’s hurricane season, and the mandatory evacuation orders issued by state officials, only about 10 percent of residents in the Florida Keys chose to evacuate.
“We had law enforcement encouraging people to leave, but unfortunately we cannot make them go,” said Irene Toner, director of emergency management for Monroe County, which includes the Florida Keys. “We are very discouraged about the low number of people evacuated.”
Wilma marks Florida's eighth hurricane since August 2004 and the fourth time this year the Keys were ordered evacuated. State emergency officials urged residents and tourists in southern Florida to head north toward Orlando. Hotels throughout the region posted "No Vacancy" signs as Floridians moved farther north away from the storm.
Emergency crews from across the country pulled into Orlando over the weekend, using the Epcot parking lot at Walt Disney World as their staging area. As the storm made landfall, Disney parks and other major tourist attractions decided not to stay open as originally planned.
At least four deaths and millions of dollars in damage in Mexico were attributed to Wilma. More deaths and widespread devastation were reported in Jamaica, Haiti and Cuba, as reports begin to come out of the area.
Hurricane Wilma is being blamed for at least one death in Coral Gables, Fla. It has been reported, but not confirmed, that a man was killed by falling tree.
All American Red Cross disaster assistance is free, made possible by voluntary donations of time and money from the American people. You can help the victims of thousands of disasters across the country each year, disasters like the Midwest ice storms, by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, which enables the Red Cross to provide shelter, food, counseling and other assistance to victims of disaster. The American Red Cross honors donor intent. If you wish to designate your donation to a specific disaster please do so at the time of your donation. Call 1-800-REDCROSS or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Contributions to the Disaster Relief Fund may be sent to your local American Red Cross chapter or to the American Red Cross, P. O. Box 37243, Washington, DC 20013. Internet users can make a secure online contribution by visiting www.redcross.org.
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