Wilma was bad in Florida but it was devastating for Cancun. An excellent blog and website called Vacation Cancun has a written detailed account and photographs that tell the story of this disaster.
"I don't know what the news is telling you in the US or other countries, we
don’t have cable back on yet to see US TV. Mexico President Vincent Fox is
telling the people of Cancun that the hotel zone will be 85% occupied on
December 15th, but from what I see that's not even remotely possible. Many of the hotels are gutted with electrical services and air ducts hanging out. There are virtually no beaches left in Cancun, just rocks up to the foundations of hotels with the ocean washing against the foundation. What used to be beach structures and swimming pools are gone. Some are floating out in the ocean. Millions of tons of sand is missing. The bottom has changed and where there used to be deep water is now sandbars."
Another story from a Cozumel/Cancun tourist can be found here:
The Coral Ridge Towers East website chronicles the damage Wilma to did to the Fort Lauderdale apartment complex and to cars parked outside. (Via Sun-Sentinel blog)
Mover Mike blogs about an Orlando Sentinelarticle that says over 200,000 people are homeless from Wilma in South Florida.
Through Monday, 426,693 people in 13 counties have applied to the Federal Emergency Management Agency for individual help, nearly 40 percent of them from Broward. And the agency already has referred nearly half of the applicants, 207,352, for housing assistance because they have no place to stay or need help repairing their damaged homes.
In the weeks ahead, that number is expected to balloon, as more dwellings are declared unsafe by city and county building inspectors who are surveying damage to houses, apartments, condos and mobile homes.
Gamma: In Florida they are preparing for a new tropical system, Tropical
Storm Gamma, that might make landfall in South Florida on
Monday. It is not supposed to become a hurricane but even Tropical
Storm force winds could be a threat to homes covered with blue tarps
after Wilma. Bloggers are also covering the new threat and local Florida bloggers are wishing Gamma away. Hopefully they will get their wish and Gamma will dissipate or stay south of Florida.
Miamist blogs briefly about Gamma: "The storm is not expected to develop into a hurricane, but Channel 4's Bryan Norcross offered the reminder that much of the damage caused by Katrina was attributed to tropical storm force winds."
Girl from Miami says: "Finally, we have phone service/internet again!! Due to fallen telephone poles and trees in the area, we lost our phones for six days. I don't mind the phones not ringing all that much, but I missed e-mails, Google and blogging buddies. I am back...for now. Tropical Storm Gamma is out there and looking like it's on the same path Wilma was on. It's due to hit Monday afternoon...just like Wilma. What's up with all these storms? It's November!" She also posted an image of Don Johnson.
