LOOKS LIKE IVAN is set to bullseye Grand Cayman. When I was last there, our dive operator Peter Milburn — a longtime Caymanian who taught Peter Benchley how to scuba dive — pointed to all the development on the beach and said “Next big hurricane, it’ll all be gone.” He said they were building too close to the beach and cutting corners on protection. The only good news is that the water around Grand Cayman is so deep (3000-5000 feet until a few hundred yards from shore, most places) that the storm surge won’t build up as much as it will elsewhere. That’s just as well, given that the highest place on the island is probably only 20 feet above sea level. Still the last hurricane (Michelle) really tore up the reef — which is probably the best in the Western Hemisphere — and this is likely to do even more damage.
InstaPundit is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.