Duplicate Southernmost Buoy To Stand In During Seawall Repair

Above, the Southernmost Point buoy in April 2019. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

For those who want to take a selfie at the famous Key West Southernmost Point buoy can continue to do so. But there's a little catch.

The buoy won't be the "real" one or at its location at the Southernmost Plaza. I saw the buoy in April 2019 when the tram I was riding in passed it.

The reason is, the plaza is to be repaired later this summer, so a duplicate buoy is being made to accommodate tourists.

According to the Keys News:

The City of Key West assures the world that the island’s most-photographed landmark, the Southernmost Buoy, will continue to be photographed while the intersection of the Southernmost Point is repaired later this summer.

While the original Southernmost Buoy will be temporarily unavailable to visitors, the city is constructing a new, temporary buoy, which will be placed at the Duval Street Pocket Park, 1400 Duval St.

Past storm events have undermined the existing Southernmost Plaza, according to city spokeswoman Alyson Crean, and the city is readying to repair the seawall and other damage at the corner of South and Whitehead streets. The work will require the closure of the area, impacting access to the existing buoy, Crean said.

The buoy being fabricated will provide visitors and residents alike with the same photo opportunity. In the meantime, the plaza will be repaired and enhanced, and the original buoy will remain at its current location.

To read more, go here. 

 

Bartender's Tip Leads Police To Key West Buoy Arsonists

Above, a screen shot from a video of the arson.

A stupid act was preceded by a stupid act that took place earlier in a bar.

The two suspects in the arson fire of the Southernmost Point landmark buoy were apprehended from a tip from a pissed off bartender. The pair had been drinking earlier and didn't tip the bartender.

According to Fox 13 News:

KEY WEST, Fla. - Always remember to tip your server, if you know what's good for you.

A tourist made a big impression in a Key West bar by ordering drinks three times on New Year's Eve without leaving a tip. That enabled the staff to easily track him down after police released webcam video showing vandals setting fire to a Christmas tree.

The arson caused more than $5,000 in damage to the city's landmark buoy marking the southernmost point in the United States, and sent the island's "coconut telegraph" gossip chain into high alert, the Miami Herald reported Tuesday.

The bar's general manager, Daylin Starks, turned to recordings from the "ton of cameras" that watch over the bar each night, and matched credit card receipts to time-stamped videos of the suspects, identified by Key West police as 21-year-old Skylar Rae Jacobson of Henrietta, Texas, and 22-year-old David Perkins of Leesburg, Florida.

The buoy has since been repaired.

To read the full story, go here. 

Southernmost Point Buoy To Be Restored By End of Week, Suspects Identified

Above, the Southernmost Point buoy in 2019. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The Southernmost Point buoy, a famous Key West, Florida landmark, should be restored by the end of this week.

Two arsonists set fire to a Christmas tree next to the buoy causing damage to the buoy's paint.

According to Fox 13 Tampa Bay:

KEY WEST, Fla. - In Key West, repairs are still being made to the famous Southernmost Point buoy that was damaged after two suspects set fire to a Christmas tree in front of the landmark.

On Monday, city officials said it should be fully restored in three to four days, depending on the weather. 

According to Key West police, they have identified the pair who vandalized the buoy. There is no word yet on whether they have been located or arrested.

To read more, go here. 

Southernmost Point Buoy Burned In Key West

Above, the two arsonists caught on webcam footage.

Two male idiots caused damage to the famous Key West, Florida Southernmost Point buoy when they set a Christmas tree on fire next to the landmark.

According to WSVN:

KEY WEST, Fla. (AP/WSVN) — Police in Florida are searching for two people who burned a part of Key West’s famous Southernmost Point buoy early New Year’s Day after setting a fire near the tourist attraction.

Authorities said two males lit a Christmas tree on fire in front of the buoy around 3:30 a.m. Saturday and the flames charred sections of the colorful, 4-ton (3,600-kilogram) cement monument that reads “90 miles to Cuba, Southernmost Point, Continental U.S.A.”

Archival webcam images of the buoy from a marketing company shows two people lighting the tree on fire near the marker, with the flames leaving a large black burn mark on the monument.

If anyone has any information regarding this incident, contact Key West Police at 305-809-1000.

To read more, go here.