Keys stilt homes stand firm in Irma
Houses built on reinforced concrete pilings, sunk into rock
For the iconic stilt homes of the Florida Keys, perched on concrete columns rising 12 feet or more above the ground, Hurricane Irma and its powerful storm surge was the ultimate test.
Most of the houses passed.
The initial assessment from Monroe County officials indicates that newer houses built on reinforced concrete pilings and sunk into rock — not sand — survived the storm that they said wiped out more than 25 percent of housing.
Christine Hurley, assistant Monroe County administrator, said she has not heard of problems with stilt houses anywhere in the Keys, and an initial assessment in Key Largo backs that up. Still, she said, “There might be substantial damage in the Lower Keys, but we have not seen that yet.”
But reports from others who have been eyeballing the destruction along the 100-mile island chain confirms the stilt homes have held up. elevated
When the Category 3 hurricane roared ashore Sept. 10, pushing seawater from the Atlantic Ocean across miles of the Overseas Highway, the surge carried with it everything in its path, including many homes that were not elevated.
In the past two decades, most of the houses and commercial properties in the Keys have been built at least 10 feet or more above the flood plain, Hurley said.
“After multiple storms hit the Keys, including Wilma and Andrew, where flooding occurred, we realized we had to move up to another standard,” she said.
That standard is spelled out in a map that specifies how far above ground each structure must be, according to location. There are only two zones in the Keys — one in Key Largo, another in Key