See? This is what I get for bitching about wearing socks and mocking my northern friends stuck in the Polar Vortex. What? You haven’t heard? Key West felt the tremors of an earthquake, off of Cuba, in the Florida Straits. Yes, you read that right. An earthquake. In Florida. Well, near Florida. I dread to see the future exclusions on our insurance policies…
We have had a few calm, hurricane-free summers, which to Floridians is equivalent to a balmy, snow-free winter. It is delightful, but you always watch the weather reports with caution, for fear of seeing the “cone of death“. That’s the fun graphic replayed for hours on end on the news, and online, every time there is the slightest tropical disturbance, making you wonder if the entire state will really be destroyed this time. We have skated by thus far…
But earthquakes are a whole different thing. Earthquakes happen suddenly, with no warning in the form of a snazzy, panic-inducing graphic. Earthquakes also happen in places where people have basements. We have no underground hiding places here. The part that makes this whole thing truly irritating is that we now have a whole new medium for feeling Mother Nature’s wrath, and we are ill-equipped to deal with it. Hurricanes? No problem. Buy some bottled water and a backup generator and you are on your way to a good old hurricane party. An earthquake? Well, I don’t even know where to start.
How did the 5.1 earthquake feel? I have no idea. I was safely tucked away in the hell of Mainland Miami traffic at the time. If you were in Key West and would like to share, feel free to leave a comment in the section below.
One thought on “If This Town’s A-Rockin’…”
A few years ago, we were awakened early one morning by Frodo crying – seconds later, we heard (not so much felt) the earthquake (don’t remember how strong – but Frodo sensed it before it happened!).
A couple years later, I was at the college’s first all-staff meeting before the start of the 2011 fall semester, when the screen displaying a PowerPoint presentation started shaking; then we felt it in floor. People panicked and apparently did the wrong thing (according to authorities) by fleeing the building!).
It was 5.8. Of course, my L.A. friends giggled at the reaction to such a small tremor!