Miami Hasn’t Seen a Hurricane in 11 Years, and That Big Beautiful Streak Will Continue

August 30, 2016

Hurricane Andrew, back in the day. See how perfectly formed it is?

My dad was just telling me the other day that Miami’s mini-mini Zika plague one the longer term might serve the same purpose as a good old hurricane, which our subtropical metropolis hasn’t seen  in ages. Its been 11 years since Wilma hit us and we’ve been lucky since with placid skies, the occasional tropical shower, and a hardly Superstorm-calibre sideswipe by Sandy, but that’s about it. Meanwhile the people keep on coming, as tourists, new residents, and probably a lot of people trying to navigate the sketchy gray area in between. Hurricanes, dad pointed out, when they came would thin out the crowds for a while after, tempering Miami’s growth and opening the proverbial release valve a bit.

The still unnamed cluster of clowds that forecasters were considering might become something more serious over the weekend and my dad was keeping up hope as a potent crowd thinner never actually showed its very mildly threatening head. The most that happened were rainstorms keeping everything nicely waterlogged and Zika’s habitat perfectly wet. The clouds have thinned but thunderstorms are still predicted all week, and Zika’s habitation potentially a lot longer. Maiybe Zika will thin out the gridlock and traffic that Miami’s been incredibly affected by lately. Miami probably won’t be hosting any maternity fairs anytime soon.