Access to the Keys is now fully open on both the 18-Mile Stretch portion of U.S. 1 and Card Sound Road after a wide ranging wildfire known as the 344 Wildfire was brought under control. 

Florida Forest Service reports the fire is now 80 percent contained and officials don't expect the fire to spread. Crews are monitoring for hot spots across the more than 26 thousand acres of burned grass and wild land affected by the blaze. No homes or business structures were burned. 

Fire crews continue to monitor the area for hotspots. 

Fire and safety officials had to intermittently close the roads to fight the blaze along the main entry and exit corridors for the Florida Keys from Tuesday through Friday last week. 

The fire ranged across over 26,000 acres of south Miami-Dade County and was battled by Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, the Florida Forest Service and additional strike teams. 

“We are deeply grateful for the dedicated firefighters, emergency responders, and partner agencies working tirelessly to contain the 344 Fire in the Everglades. Their swift and coordinated response has been crucial in protecting our roads and preserving the natural environment,” said Monroe County Mayor Jim Scholl. 
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While no further disruptions from the fire are expected, visitors to the Keys are advised to download the Monroe County Sheriff's Department app with push alerts for road openings, closures and slowdowns to keep up with traffic conditions during future visits. 

​On Thurs. July 4, competitors and spectators will converge on the beach of the Southernmost Beach Café, 1405 Duval Street, for the 2024 World Famous Key Lime Pie Eating Championship, Key West, Florida’s wildly popular tropical spin-off on New York City’s traditional Fourth of July hotdog-eating contest.

Founded in 2013, up to 25 contestants compete in a timed race to consume a 9-inch Key Lime pie, topped with whipped cream, without using their hands. Winners claim a trophy and championship belt, along with sweet fame and glory.

Last year, Joshua Mogle of Altoona, IA, triumphed with a winning time of 3 minutes, 35 seconds. To date the fastest recorded winning time is a blistering 40:57 seconds, achieved in 2018 by attorney Trey Bergman of Houston, TX. Berman also triumphed in 2017 with a time of 51:92 seconds. Five Key West-based residents have won in past years: Chris Shultz in 2022: 74 sec; David Johnson in 2019: 58.2 sec; and Steve Carr in 2015: 78 sec. There are no recorded times for 2013 winner Gary Delos Santos or 2014 winner Tony Mantia, though Delos Santos, now “Father Gary,” a Miami-based Catholic priest, has announced his intention to return this year and reclaim his title.

“While there’s any number of eating competitions that occur across the U.S. throughout the year, we believe ours takes the cake (so to speak) not only as the Southernmost, but as the most spectacularly sloppy,” said Nadene Grossman Orr, Key Lime Festival Director and President/CEO of We’ve Got the Keys.

Key lime pies are traditionally made with condensed milk, egg yolks and the juice of Key limes within a graham cracker crust and topped with whipped cream or meringue. Competition pies will measure 9 inches (23-centimeters); competitors may not use utensils or their hands, though goggles and dive masks are permitted.

The World Famous Key Lime Pie Eating Championship at the Southernmost Beach Café kicks off at 1:30pm but its Key Lime vendor village opens to the public at 10:00am; other festivities, games and attractions at 11am.
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The World Famous Key Lime Pie Eating Championship is a highlight of Key West’s five-day long Key Lime Festival which runs from July 3-July 7 and is presented in part by the Monroe County Tourist Development Council and We’ve Got the Keys. Admission to the competition is free, cost to compete is $25 and is open to those aged 18 and up. For registration links and a full calendar of events, visit http://www.keylimefestival.com.

In 2013, Edgardo “Gary” Delos Santos, a seminarian assigned at the Basilica of Saint Mary Star of the Sea in Key West, FL, triumphed in meringue-faced glory over a field of fierce competitors at the island’s inaugural World Famous Key Lime Pie Eating Championship.

Now an ordained Archdiocese of Miami Catholic priest, Father Gary has announced his intention to return and reclaim his title at the 2024 event, set to take place at the Southernmost Beach Café on Thurs., July 4.
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Father Gary’s 2013 victory was not an anomaly; born the youngest of six children in Zamboanga City, Philippines, he is known to revel in spirited competition and adventure. We caught up with the intrepid soul-man for a pre-competition Q&A ahead of this year’s event:

Q: How did winning the 2013 championship impact your life?
I was a seminarian studying for the priesthood in Key West when I won the Key Lime Pie Eating Championship in 2013, and it impacted my life joyously! What an experience, to win the very first competition and to have this story to tell!
 
Q: Have you competed in any other extreme eating competitions?
This is definitely not a regular occurrence for me. Other than one eating contest at a family gathering in the Philippines when I was young, there’s only been the 2013 Championship competition.
 
Q: Are you currently in training, and if yes, what does training consist of?
Yes! I am training using Publix Key Lime pies, though I can’t reveal how many or how often. For the next stage of training I will add an overloaded cream on top.
 
Q: Will you have a cheering section of supporters?
I have friends joining me at the event, and invite and welcome my Saint Mary Star of the Sea Basilica brethren priests to come and cheer me on! And I hope that Father Christopher Marino, the new Rector (and once a Miami Herald food critic!) will come.  
 
Q: Do you feel your relationship with the Creator could give you an edge?
My prayers will surely help and give me the “positive vibes!”
 
Q: During the competition – collar or no collar?
Uhmmmm….let me surprise everyone!
 
 Q: Will you bless your pie before beginning? (And if yes, how about your competitor’s pies?)
I will say a prayer for myself, my competitors, and for all of us to have fun! To have an excellent fraternal time with one another, and enjoy celebrating our Independence Day! God Bless us all; God Bless America!
 
The World Famous Key Lime Pie Eating Championship is a highlight of Key West’s annual Key Lime Festival, set to run from July 3 – July 7. Other facets include culinary events, a Key Lime Pie Hop, Key Lime rum tasting experiences, a Key Lime cocktail “Sip & Stroll,” a gravity-defying Key Lime pie drop from the top of the Key West Lighthouse, a Key Lime Passport game, and much more.

The Key Lime Festival is presented in part by the Monroe County Tourist Development Council and We’ve Got the Keys. The World Famous Key Lime Pie Eating Championship event will take place July 4 at the Southernmost Beach Café, 1405 Duval St., 10am-2pm, contest at 1:30pm. Admission is free for spectators, $25 for competitors, and is open to those aged 18 and up. Prospective competitors can fill out an entry form and pay the entry fee at http://www.keylimefestival.com, where a full Festival event schedule can also be found.

MONROE COUNTY, FL – The Monroe County Board of County Commissioners made several recommendations at their Wednesday meeting to be delivered to the Tourist Development Council (TDC) board of directors after a Clerk of Court audit brought numerous discrepancies that need further clarification and investigation. The TDC is a 9-member advisory board of the County.


TDC Board Chairwoman Rita Irwin attended the meeting. “We want to cooperate, we want to be better, and we want to look at this as an opportunity,” she said. “We have grown so quickly that we recognize that we need to make changes, be fluid, and be transparent with taxpayer dollars.”


The commissioners voted to exercise its statutory authority to hire an outside firm, Cherry Bekaert, to audit the books and accounts of the TDC. The commission also voted to recommend that the TDC hire the same firm to provide temporary financial and management assistance to the TDC and Visit Florida Keys, the nonprofit that employs TDC staff. Finally, the commissioners voted to recommend that the TDC place the marketing director, Stacey Mitchell, on administrative leave with pay pending the completion of the audit and future recommendations of the board.


Cherry Bekaert representatives at the meeting said they would lay out a plan to understand the organization and work to keep the day-to-day operations intact for the upcoming season while prioritizing identifying and closing gaps.


The TDC board will meet on Thursday, Nov. 16 at 10 a.m. at Double Tree Resort in Key West to discuss the audit and the BOCC’s recommendations. The meeting is open to the public and will be in person only.

The Florida Keys Council of the Arts invites visual artists and writers to submit artwork and articles for Culture 2024 Magazine, a publication of the Monroe County Tourist Development Council, Tinsley Advertising and the Cultural Umbrella of the Florida Keys & Key West.
 
The Culture Magazine is a freestanding publication distributed throughout the Keys and is inserted into the In-room Concierge in over 3,900 guestrooms reaching over 500,000 visitors annually. The magazine includes information on the Keys' performing, literary and visual arts, a calendar of events and advertisements.

Call to Visual Artists
Artwork selected for the cover will receive $1,200 for one-time usage in Culture Magazine 2024. (Additional artwork chosen for the magazine will receive a caption with artists' name.)
 
Both vertical and horizontal images may be submitted. Only online applications will be accepted.
 
Artists may submit up to three images by completing the online application. Please name your uploaded files as instructed in the application.
 
Due by February 27, 2023 at midnight.
To apply, click here.

Call to Writers
Two Florida Keys writers will be selected and paid a $1,200 each for research, writing, related photography and any necessary revising (based on recommendations from the committee) of an article of approximately 1,200 words.
 
Articles assigned will be factual, informational and primarily designed to introduce visitors to the art, culture and heritage of the Florida Keys.
 
Writers may choose from these topics:
 
1. Theaters of The Keys
Theaters and performing arts throughout the destination: musicals, dramas and comedies, dance and music, too!
 
2. Key Lime Pie
A Florida Keys favorite. The history of Key Lime pie and the best places to grab a slice throughout the Keys.
 
Due by February 27, 2023 at midnight.
To apply, click here.