It’s early June, 1966, you’re in your boat off the coast of Key West and the fish aren’t biting. The wind is picking up and the weather is turning sour but it’s Florida so what else is new.
But this time it feels different. Clouds to the southwest are weirdly dark and seas are getting rough in a hurry. You curse your bad luck and head for the dock. “Weird day,” you say as the wind grows stronger. “If I didn’t know any better I’d think this was a…” you stop yourself, afraid to say it aloud. It’s early June and hurricanes don’t come this early, right? Right?!
Hurricane Alma, a rare June major hurricane, passed west of Key West causing power outages and flooding across the island. The moved north through the Gulf, eventually coming ashore near Apalachee Bay. This was the earliest US hurricane landfall since 1825.