FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Nasty weather in South Florida has made what would usually be a busy weekend on our beaches quite the opposite.
High winds churned up the surf on Fort Lauderdale Beach Friday, blowing sand just about everywhere.
“I walk everyday and this is the windiest it has ever been,” beachgoer Ron McDonald said. “I have had to cover my eyes a couple of times.”
A more than 1-foot-high sand dune even had traffic tied up on A1A.
Customers were scarce at the shops, bars and restaurants lining the beach.
“Usually we have a full patio downstairs, especially on a Friday so now everyone is tucked in here inside,” Angel Dominguez, an employee at 411 South Bar and Grill, said.
“The bar was full. everyone was here. It’s one of the only places in town we can close down with the plastic,” said Robert Bassler, who works in Fort Lauderdale.
The high winds made officials put an end to the annual Winterfest Boat Parade in Fort Lauderdale.
The strong gusts of up to 40 mph caused choppy waters Thursday near the Las Olas Bridge and kept organizers of the parade from doing any decorating before they ultimately decided to cancel Friday.
It was much of the same story in Miami Beach.
Local 10 News spoke to a group of women who went to South Beach for a “girls’ trip,” but ended up soaked.
“We never saw the sun,” one of the tourists said.
As winds whipped the palm trees along Ocean Drive, empty tables and space heaters replaced what would usually be paying customers.
The hot fashion Friday was hoodies and rain gear, even on a normally-shirtless Robert “Raven” Kraft, who hasn’t broken his daily running streak in decades.
Friday was no exception.
“Rain or shine or wind or hurricane,” he’ll keep running, Kraft said.