Seafarers' Centers Reopen at Florida's Ports

Now that Hurricane Irma has passed, Florida and the American South have begun to assess the damage and initiate cleanup and recovery operations. The Miami Herald reported Wednesday that PortMiami’s north channel – the city where Irma was predicted to hit hardest – was open as of Tuesday evening. On Monday morning, tanker trucks began streaming out of the reopened Port Everglades, carrying millions of gallons of fuel. Florida Power & Light hopes to have electricity restored to South Florida by the end of this weekend.

To be sure, there are places much, much worse off than South Florida. Barbuda was devastated. The Florida Keys fared better but are still struggling with a lack of utilities and other services. Even Jacksonville up north is still dealing with a massive storm surge; as reported by The Florida Times-Union, the severity of the surge resembled that of a Category 3 hurricane instead of the tropical storm that actually hit the city.