This following story is timely for two reasons: one, hurricane season begins in a few weeks and; two, the National Hurricane Center just officially reclassified the Great Labor Day Hurricane of 1935 as the mightiest storm in history. It replaces Hurricane Camille long thought worthy of such distinction.
I knew long ago the 1935 storm was the strongest ever. I knew because I interviewed one of its few survivors. In my first book, “From Cartels to Competition”, I wrote about 24 year old Wilbur Jones. Trapped inside an overturned rail road car, he and others also were pinned beneath Henry Flagler’s rescue train.
I’ve just read that Jones, formerly an insurance agent and well connected public figure, celebrated his 101st birthday. Perhaps his 1935 brush with death tells how fortunate we are today to have a Hurricane Center with advance warning systems.
Perhaps it’s a horrifying reminder of what mother nature may have in store beginning this June 1. Enjoy! [Read more…] about Wilbur Jones & the Killer in the Keys!