Good News: All 54 Cats At Ernest Hemingway’s Key West Home Have Survived Hurricane Irma

• Hurricane Irma battered Key West on Sunday But its wrath and mandatory evacuation orders in Key West were not enough to deter staff at Ernest Hemingway’s Home and Museum —and its 54 six-toed cats — from leaving.

  

  All 10 staff members decided to stay at the popular tourist attraction and protect the writer's landmark house.

  
  

  Via The Ernest Hemingway Home And Museum
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• “The house is boarded up…and shuttered with half-inch thick plywood,” Museum curator, Dave Gonzalez said. “We have 54 cats in the property [and] we’ve stocked up on cat food and water.”

  
  Via The Ernest Hemingway Home and museum

• The Mercury News shared a tweet posted Saturday morning, which showed that some of the cats were safe and sound.

  
  Via twitter

• The house also avoided major flooding and did not suffer structural damage, according to TMZ. A few trees fell down on the property, but no standing water was left according to social media updates.

  
  Via Ernest Hemingway Home and museum
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• The author's former home serves as a museum where polydactyl cats - six toes - roam freely.

  Some of the cats are said to be descendants of Hemingway's own six-toed cat, Snow White, who was given to him by a local fisherman. 'That cat started his love for cats. You can see pictures of Hemingway writing and a cat up (near) his typewriter. Cats gave him a sense of peace when he was writing."

  Via Ernest Hemingway home and museum

• The house, which was built in 1851, is 16 feet above sea level, has 18-inch-thick limestone walls and three generators.

  

  Built in 1849 and completed in 1851, the house was acquired by Hemingway in 1931. He lived there with his wife, Pauline, and their two sons from 1931 until 1940, when he left for Cuba.

  Via Ernest Hemingway home and museum

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