I
rma, a Category 4 hurricane, was the most intense Atlantic
hurricane to strike the United States since Katrina in 2005,
and the first major hurricane hit Florida since Wilma in 2005,
12 years before. The storm center made landfall on Cudjoe Key
in the lower Florida Keys on September 10, 2017. According to
the National Hurricane Center, its top sustained winds were 130
mph.
Cudjoe Key, a tiny island off the coast of Florida in the lower
Florida Keys, sustained the brunt of the massive winds from
Irma as it unleashed its fury on this tropical paradise. Hardest
hit was Venture Out Resort, a coastal community made up of
predominately manufactured and modular homes.
“Someone sent us a photo
of the front of our house
and that looked to be
intact. Then our neighbor
called and told me that
everything looked to be
intact outside, so I asked
him to check inside to
check things out. After
he went inside, he called
us and was just incredu-
lous. He said that we had
nothing. No damage what-
soever. Even the pictures
were still on the walls!”
Jim Jones
– Cudjoe Key, Florida
Hurricane Irma
Damage: $64 billion (2017 USD)
Palm Harbor Homes
– BUILT IRMA STRONG!
SM
Of the 659 homes in Venture Out Resort, over 100 homes
were destroyed. But not one of the 15 Palm Harbor homes in
Cudjoe Key were among those that were destroyed.
September 2017
Hurricane Irma
