Florida mayor not surprised Michael was a Cat 5

MIAMI (AP) – The mayor of the Florida city that was ground zero for Hurricane Michael says he’s not surprised by news that it’s been reclassified as the strongest possible storm.

Mexico Beach Mayor Al Cathey says he and others who rode out the Oct. 10, 2018, storm thought they were dealing with a Category 5 storm all along. And he says the change in status doesn’t equate to additional federal funding to help in the vast recovery efforts.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced Friday that the storm’s intensity when it hit the Gulf Coast was actually 5 mph faster than originally thought. That puts the storm at just over the 157 mph threshold of a Category 5.

The remote city along what’s referred to as Florida’s Forgotten Coast is struggling to rebuild. Cathey says there were some 2,700 structures before the storm. Today, less than 500 remain, and many of those are severely damaged.

He says city needs state, local and federal help to rebuild.