Florida Keys ordered to evacuate in light of hurricane

KEY WEST, Fla. -- The Florida Keys were ordered evacuated Sunday as meteorologists warned that the chain of islands likely would be brushed by Hurricane Michelle. Rain spread into the state as the eye of the hurricane blasted down on the south coast of Cuba. \nForecasters at the National Hurricane Center in Miami issued a hurricane warning for all of the Florida Keys, projecting that winds of 75 mph or more could reach the area Sunday and remain into Monday. Gusts, up to 52 mph in Sobrero Key, and heavy surf were already pounding the area's beaches. \nBennie Sweeney, who owns a Key West T-shirt shop, opened his store but only to prepare for the storm. Sweeney said he was going to hang a picture of a rabbi on the window. \n"We went to the synagogue, we prayed. We came here just to make sure nothing happens," Sweeney said. \nMonroe County officials ordered a mandatory evacuation for all the Keys early Sunday and Miami-Dade County officials ordered the evacuation of a portion of the county. Public schools in both counties will be closed Monday. \nThe evacuation orders came a day after Gov. Jeb Bush declared a state of emergency. \n"It appears that the storm has veered to the east, thankfully," Bush said Sunday. But, "It's still a very powerful storm ... clearly there's going to be some impact." \nHeavy bands of rain with tropical storm force winds, which range from 39-to-73 mph, were spreading across the Florida Straits and the Keys, and were moving toward the southeast coast of Florida. \nThe center of Michelle should pass over Cuba by midnight Sunday and head into the eastern Florida Straits, said Ed Rappaport, deputy director of the National Hurricane Center. \nUp until Monday afternoon, parts of the Keys and South Florida will experience brief periods of heavy rains and strong winds, with the hurricane's closest approach to the state at dawn, said Rappaport. \n"It's going to take a while before conditions improve," said Rappaport. \nCraig Fugate, director of the state's Division of Emergency Management, said the "all-clear" could not be given to people in the Keys until Monday. \nThe Keys, a chain of some 40 islands stretching 128 miles, have a little more than 80,000 permanent residents, plus visitors. They are connected by highway bridges, but only two spans connect the first island, Key Largo, to the mainland. \nBy Sunday afternoon, traffic heading out of the Keys was moderate, and there was still some light southbound traffic, said Highway Patrol Lt. Ernesto Duarte. \nSome 75 residents of the Keys arrived at a hurricane shelter at Florida International University, said American Red Cross officials. It was unclear how many people were expected to show up. \nIts top winds at 135 mph, Michelle was not expected to strike Florida directly. If the hurricane were to deviate slightly to the north, off its projected track to the central Bahamas, the Keys and South Florida could be pelted with heavy rain and strong winds. \nMichelle's speed increased to 13 mph Sunday, after hovering at about 3 mph most of the previous day. Forecasters said the storm had probably peaked in intensity and was expected to weaken over the next 24 hours. \nIn Key West on Sunday, some gas stations doubled their business as people headed out of town. But others took the storm in stride. One woman rode her bike to work four miles in the wind. \n"I almost didn't have to pedal, my poncho acted like a sail," said Lyn Hazel, a book store clerk.